The Sixers are 3-1 four games into a five-game stretch of seemingly winnable games heading into Sunday afternoon's home meeting with the Heat. While they laid an egg in a terrible 15-point loss at Oklahoma City in the second of the games, they bounced back to beat the Raptors and Bulls.
Considering they're facing a five-game Western swing that begins Tuesday against the Lakers, it's imperative that the Sixers are playing good ball when they travel to Los Angeles if they don't want to come home below .500. "We're getting there," said Sixers head coach Tony DiLeo. "We're playing more aggressively. We want to get better, but we're going in the right direction."
The Sixers have shot at least .500 from the field in the past two victories and are getting high-level play from second-year forward Thaddeus Young and defensive anchor Samuel Dalembert. Still, guard Willie Green says the Sixers have some work to do, especially at closing out on perimeter shooters.
"I'll feel like we're back on track when we win three or four games in a row," Green said. "Winning one game, losing one, we're playing even. Hopefully, we can just continue to build from here."
SIXERS 104, BULLS 101: The Sixers shot .535 from the floor and handed out a season-high 27 assists in the finale at the Spectrum. They prevailed despite being outscored in three-point scoring, 27-3. Thaddeus Young scored a career-high 31 points to lead the Sixers (32-31). Andre Iguodala added 25 points, while Samuel Dalembert grabbed a season-high 19 rebounds and Andre Miller contributed 13 points and 13 assists.
