The Philadelphia 76ers struggled from beyond the arc on opening night, hitting just three of their first 20 three-point attempts against the New York Knicks. Their offense stalled until Anfernee Simons took over in the third quarter, sinking three triples to ignite a late rally. Two of those shots helped spark a run that pulled the Sixers back into contention.
Tyrese Maxey praised Simons’s impact, saying, “Huge, huge, big shots by five. He did a good job. We’re looking for him when he gets in the game. We’re hunting for him. We want him to hunt his shot, and he did a good job with that tonight.” The guard’s timely shooting gave the team a boost at a critical moment.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added to the offensive revival in the fourth quarter, knocking down two important three-pointers. LeBron James acknowledged their influence, noting, “We got the ball moving from one side to another. Guys felt in a good rhythm, and you know, just like you said, KCP was huge. The shots by Ant was huge, too, obviously.” James’s remarks capture how Simons and Caldwell-Pope helped ease the pressure after a sluggish start.
Caldwell-Pope brings championship experience to Philadelphia, having won titles in 2020 and 2023. James pointed to that background as a source of leadership, saying, “It’s just another guy that can hold guys accountable because they understand and they see that the guy has gotten to the finish line. And beyond the finish line. I went through the rope. So definitely it’s very helpful and these guys that’s been here are trying to build to get to that point.” The veteran presence could prove valuable as the Sixers look to develop consistency.
Despite the late surge, the Sixers’ shooting woes were evident. They made only two threes in the first half, a statistic Jaylen Brown highlighted. “We gotta shoot the ball well,” Brown said. “I think those are guys that can shoot. I think we made two threes in the first half, I want to say. Just a testament to our defense is that we were able to stay in the game. We’re only making two threes. So we got stops, we just got to hit some shots.”
Philadelphia’s defense kept them competitive while their offense found its footing. The team will look to carry the momentum from Simons and Caldwell-Pope’s performance into their next game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday. The Sixers know they must improve their shooting to avoid a repeat of their slow start.
According to Yahoo Sports.