3 observations after George, KJ Martin help Sixers get a gritty win over Magic

The Sixers gritted their teeth and earned a split against the Magic on Friday night in their two-game mini-series.

Paul George and KJ Martin each played central roles in the team’s 102-94 victory at Wells Fargo Center. 

George had 21 points and nine assists. KJ Martin posted a season-high 20 points on 9-for-10 shooting.

Franz Wagner scored 30 points for the Magic, who fell to 16-9. The Sixers improved to 6-15.

Centers Joel Embiid (left knee injury management) and Adem Bona (left knee contusion) were out. Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said pregame Embiid had done on-court workouts the past few days and that the swelling in his knee was down. Nurse was unsure of what Embiid’s status will be for the Sixers’ upcoming Sunday afternoon game against the Bulls.

Orlando’s Paolo Banchero, Gary Harris and Jonathan Isaac were out with injuries. 

Here are observations on the Sixers' win Friday night over the Magic:

George the go-to guy early

Andre Drummond returned from a right ankle sprain a game ahead of the Sixers’ original projection. He started with Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre Jr., George and Guerschon Yabusele. Jared McCain slid to the second unit. 

George scored the game’s first four points with a couple of mid-range jumpers. Right away, it was clear that the Sixers’ offense flowed better and that Maxey didn’t have nearly as much pressure to create everything. 

“He can take shots, he can draw multiple defenders and he can pass,” Nurse said of George. “He’s able to score in multiple ways. He’s good in some isolations, he’s good off pin-downs, we threw him in the post there for a while. He ended up passing the first one out for a layup and then scoring the next one.

“And the big thing is … when you’re covered and you can look (the defender) in the eye and nail a three. Those are baskets that teams make in the NBA, right? To have a guy that can do that is important.” 

George did commit a bad turnover in his opening stint when he tossed a casual outlet pass. Wagner picked it off and nailed a three-pointer. The worst aspect of the Sixers’ offense early on was their steady stream of turnovers. The team’s eight first-quarter giveaways ranged from Drummond fumbling an on-target pass to McCain getting stripped of the ball from behind. 

While George’s presence didn’t get Maxey back into top form, the 24-year-old guard did sink a wide-open three in the first quarter. With that shot, Maxey passed Tobias Harris for fourth place in Sixers history in made threes.

However, Maxey was peripheral for most of the first half. He didn’t score again until the 7:04 mark of the third quarter and had no assists until late in the third. Fortunately for the Sixers, George was far more productive as both a scorer and passer. He notched his sixth assist when he set Yabusele up for a layup just before the halftime buzzer. 

Though he's totaled 50 points and 17 assists over his last two outings, George described himself as being “a little limited” by the brace he's worn on his left knee.

“I think there’s certain plays that I’m a little hesitant with,” he said. “I like to play side to side a little bit. I think it’s making me play a little more with a blueprint, not messing around. Just getting straight to the point, playing downhill.

“It almost has helped, in a way, with just slowing me down a little bit and allowing the game to come to me. But we’ll see when that brace comes off and how I’m able to play.”

Stellar Martin showing

Martin was the star of the Sixers’ second unit.

In his first stint, Martin made an and-one layup, a corner three, and a fast-break hoop courtesy of a smart George lob. With a lefty dunk on the Sixers’ final possession of the first quarter, Martin reached 10 points. 

The explosive 23-year-old also had a non-scoring highlight in the second quarter when he leaped high above everyone else to snag an offensive rebound and then found McCain for an uncontested layup. Martin’s solid defense on Wagner was valuable, too.

The Sixers’ other Martin had a rockier ride. Caleb Martin landed awkwardly after drawing a foul late in the first quarter. He grabbed at his left ankle and limped to the Sixers’ bench. Though he eventually subbed out and headed back to the locker room with Sixers head athletic trainer Kevin Johnson, Martin returned to the action early in the second quarter and logged eight first-half minutes. He stayed on the bench in the second half.

“He could’ve played in the second half, but he was sore,” Nurse said. “He tweaked his ankle there a little bit. He could’ve gone. He was ready to go back in and play, but it ended up a little bit like KJ’s playing so well, Kelly’s rebounding the ball and playing solid … Jared didn’t have a very good first half, but we gave him his second-half shot and he played a little bit better in the second half. So we didn’t really have to go to (Caleb Martin).”

Along with KJ Martin, Drummond was a bright spot in the second quarter. He won several individual battles in a row against Moe Wagner and did physical, persistent work on the offensive boards. The 31-year-old big man also picked up four steals Friday night.

Much like in his 19-point performance last Saturday against the Pistons, Martin seemed to be in the middle of nearly everything good throughout the evening for the Sixers. He's been especially strong lately at both decisively attacking and anticipating spots where he can use his tremendous athleticism.

“He’s played hard,” Maxey said. “He goes out there and competes every single night. He guards one through five, literally. He rebounds. I’ve been on him about just shooting the ball, whether it’s in the paint, whether it’s threes. … I thought he played great.”

Defense wins the day

Franz Wagner followed up his 35-point night Wednesday in the Magic’s win over the Sixers by scoring 15 of Orlando’s first 19 points. They included three long-range shots.

After that, the Magic were (almost literally) unable to make a three-pointer in the first three quarters. Orlando began a ghastly 5 for 30 from three-point territory. The Sixers again varied their defenses and played zone frequently. The Magic continued to settle for deep jumpers and didn’t impose their size advantages often. 

The Sixers built a nine-point halftime lead, but their outside shooting was similarly poor. They fell to 3 for 18 from long distance in the third quarter on a Maxey jumper that grazed the front rim. Both teams became more focused on driving into the paint and initiating contact whenever possible. Maxey was again visibly exasperated about his lack of free throws. He finally drew one with 3.7 seconds left in the third quarter. 

With Drummond at four fouls and on the bench, Moe Wagner’s second-chance layup cut Orlando’s deficit to 59-57. The Sixers responded perfectly, rattling off a 10-0 run. Maxey played a key part, converting two driving layups and assisting a McCain corner three. 

The Sixers extended their advantage to 78-61 on a tightly contested George three early in the fourth quarter. From there, Orlando made the Sixers sweat. Jalen Suggs (22 points) got hot and the Sixers missed a few crunch-time foul shots. The team's lead dipped as low as four points.

In the end, no catastrophic collapse was in the cards. The Sixers defended very well for the vast majority of the game and deserved their victory.

“I just think they’re playing together, there’s good spirit, the energy’s good,” Nurse said. “The defense has certainly gotten a lot better. Our menu of what we can do defensively is getting bigger all the time. We played two different zones again tonight. We played three different zones the other night. Switching, blitzing, all this stuff. They’re starting to help each other a lot more on defense and being more aware.”