Sixers Bell Ringer: Lonnie Walker IV, Quentin Grimes lead Sixers over what's left of the Jazz

Published 2 weeks ago• 4 minute read

Tyrese Maxey - 16
Joel Embiid - 8
Jared McCain - 8
Paul George - 7
Kelly Oubre Jr. - 5
Guerschon Yabusele - 4
Quentin Grimes - 4
Ricky Council IV - 2
Justin Edwards - 2
KJ Martin - 2
Adem Bona - 1
Jared Butler - 1
Andre Drummond - 1
No One - 1

The Philadelphia 76ers won a basketball game, for better or worse.

Both the Sixers and the Jazz had laundry list injury reports for this one. Philly was without Paul George (groin), Tyrese Maxey (back, finger), Eric Gordon (wrist) and Kyle Lowry (hip) in addition to Joel Embiid and Jared McCain, both done for the season. Jalen Hood-Schifino is also out (G League, two-way). Utah was without Lauri Markkanen (back), Walker Kessler (rest), Collin Sexton (ankle), Jordan Clarkson (plantar fasciitis), Taylor Hendricks (fibula fracture) John Collins (back), Jaden Springer (back), Elijah Harkless (G League, two-way) and Oscar Tschiebwe (G League, two-way).

So, that should give you an idea of what kind of NBA game we were dealing with.

After a slow start put the Sixers in an early hole, Philadelphia’s shooting and offensive production started to kick into gear. They outscored the Jazz 38-26 in the second frame and held a seven-point lead going into the break. Sixteen third-period points from Lonnie Walker IV extended the Sixers’ advantage to nearly 20 by the start of the final frame. Utah staged a late comeback, pulling within a few points in the final seconds, but Philadelphia held on.

Jazz win the tank-off, Sixers win the game 126-122.

The Sixers are now 22-41. They are now seventh in lottery position, one game behind the Brooklyn Nets for the sixth.

No rests for the weary here — the Sixers play again Monday night, visiting the Atlanta Hawks. Nineteen to go.

Until then, let’s get to the Bell Ringer. We actually have a handful of choices to pick from tonight.

Quentin Grimes continues to be the brightest spot of this (admittedly-depleted) Sixers’ lineup. He creates numerous good looks not only for himself but for his teammates as well and he’s been a key to the Sixers’ offensive production any time he’s on the floor. That was the case again tonight against the Jazz. Grimes led the way for the Sixers’ in the first half with 16 points (4-for-6 FG, 3-for-5 3PT, 5-for-5 FT) with three assists and two steals. He had a bit less work to do in the second half with other players getting into gear (one being Lonnie Walker IV, who we will talk about in a minute). Grimes finished the night with 25 points.

Lonnie Walker IV put up another solid night against the Jazz after putting up 17 against the Boston Celtics in the Sixers’ last contest. On Sunday, Walker entered the second half with just five points on 1-for-5 field goal shooting before deciding to take over in the third period. He put up 16 points in the third frame itself, shooting 6-for-9 from the floor with two triples in that stint. He notched his first career double-double in the contest with 25 points and 11 rebounds.

Butler has been relatively under-utilized by Nick Nurse so far but he got a decent chunk of time on the floor Sunday night — he took advantage. Butler put up 15 points on 5-for-8 field goal shooting with three triples, which is good in itself. More impressively, though, is the team-leading nine assists he notched. There were a number of really good looks from Butler throughout this one and it’s certainly a skill to watch for further development in these last 19 games.

With Nurse mentioning pregame to the media that they will be starting to monitor the minutes of some main players in the rotation, Butler may find himself with more opportunities like tonight as the season comes down this final stretch.

Adem Bona: 14 points, 14 rebounds (7 offensive), 1 assist, 2 steals, 5 blocks

Another career-first double-double! Adem Bona notched his first such game on Sunday with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Bona came in off the bench for starter Andre Drummond and immediately looked like the stronger of the two for the evening. Active and energetic on both ends of the floor, Bona’s boards were split down the middle, with seven on the offensive end and seven on defense. He also had five blocks and two steals.