Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse highlighted several encouraging developments after his team opened the preseason with a 120-97 victory over the New York Knicks on Monday.
Nurse was particularly pleased with the growing confidence of Jabari Walker, emphasizing the importance of taking open shots and contributing on the glass.
“He’s kind of been playing with a little bit more confidence this week,” Nurse said. “Just feels like he’s ready to pull the trigger and certainly he goes in and snaps down rebounds.”
Nurse added that the Walker’s perimeter shooting could be an important part of his role.
“On the perimeter shot just kind of looks like he’s maybe over a hump on when he’s got space, he’s going to take them, which is where we want him because he’s a really good shooter,” Nurse said. “So, it’s good if he can provide space and rebound, he’s going to be on the floor.”
Nurse was also asked about the potential of lineups built around Jaylen Brown and VJ Edgecombe. Brown scored 22 points in 17 minutes in his Philadelphia debut, while Edgecombe finished with 12 points, four rebounds and seven assists in 20 minutes.
“It’s hard to kind of take too much from it when there’s several key guys missing,” Nurse said. “But I think there’s certainly some scoring there that will need to be on the floor.”
He also pointed to Anfernee Simons as another potential source of scoring once he is integrated into the lineup.
Nurse was encouraged by rookie Labaron Philon Jr., who played 25 minutes and finished with six points and four assists.
“I really like his ability to run the team,” Nurse said. “He’s really communicative. He really gets the guys set up and stuff.”
Nurse acknowledged that Philon did not get many clean opportunities to score, but said the experience would be valuable.
“They had a certain coverage for him that we’ll be able to see,” he said. “We’ll be able to let him work on that now and to give him a counter move to that. I thought they were kind of pinning him on the side a little bit. But that’s just great. I’m happy he got out there for 25 minutes.”
Edgecombe also drew praise for his development as a ball-handler.
“I think just in general it just feels like he’s better than he was a year ago,” Nurse said. “And I think his handle is getting him through some tighter gaps down the lane.”
Nurse also discussed Brown’s ability to create offense in different ways.
“I was more impressed with his offensive creation, right? Not only his own shot, but just his ability to kind of come down and be in the paint,” Nurse said.
“He kind of what I would call a methodical driver. He does it a little bit more with balance and strength than he does with maybe quickness, but he usually, again, breaks through the gap. And now he’s heading towards the rim.”
Brown also showed his shooting range and ability to score from the post, giving Nurse multiple ways to use him offensively.
Defensively, Nurse was encouraged by Philadelphia’s physicality and improvement from its previous preseason outing.
“I really thought we did a good job of kind of squaring up and chesting the ball when they were trying to drive,” Nurse said. “Our guys were doing a good enough job of keeping their guys in front with some physicality.”
“We’ve been really emphasizing getting our defense set up and we did a pretty decent job of getting back tonight.”
The 76ers led 72-58 at halftime and eventually pulled away for the 23-point victory, giving Nurse plenty of positives to take from Philadelphia’s first preseason game.
