One of the main reasons the idea of tanking this season never resonated with me is that, performance to date notwithstanding, a team led by Tyrese Maxey and Paul George should be well ahead of the bottom-feeders of the league. So even if Philadelphia made the decision to shut Joel Embiid down for the season, the Sixers theoretically shouldn’t sink too far for a tanking strategy to be viable.
We saw evidence of that theory in Friday night’s surprising 132-129 win over the Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers. Maxey and George combined for 59 points, with George leading the charge with 30 points on 11-of-21 shooting, including 6-of-11 from three-point range.