Doc Rivers, Philadelphia 76ers
by Alex Fischbein

Doc Rivers is an issue | The Atlantic Files Ep206

This week, on the Atlantic Files, we welcome Troy of the Planet 76 Podcast to talk about Doc Rivers and the Philadelphia 76ers. We debated whether or not the Sixers needed to trade Ben Simmons, Tobias Harris, or both. Also, we took a look at all of the latest Damian Lillard rumors and even the New York Knicks since they’ve benched Kemba Walker.

One of the biggest conversations going around Philly sports circles right now is the coaching from Doc Rivers. His after-timeout play calls, rotations, and playoff resume have been very sketchy. Now, with the team getting back to full strength except for Ben Simmons, his coaching is going to be scrutinized. Every ‘x and o’ matters now when the team isn’t as talented as the ones they’re going to play.

Whenever Ben Simmons is brought up, Tobias Harris’ name now gets thrown into the conversation as well in terms of trade talk. Some Sixers fans want to trade Harris and keep Simmons while others want the opposite. What if the Sixers actually need to trade both of them to truly compete for a title? Can they get anything out of Tobias Harris’ huge contract?

Then, in comes the added Damian Lillard rumors. These days there are new rumors about Lillard wanting to play with Ben Simmons in Portland. On top of that, apparently, Lillard is unhappy with the team and the coaching since it wasn’t the exact coach that he wanted. Also, to add more fuel to the fire, Portland fired their General Manager so nobody knows what that might bring in terms of roster makeup.

Finally, the Knicks aren’t exactly improving ever since their plan to bench Kemba Walker. The offense hasn’t done much more than it already was doing, and the defense doesn’t look improved either. So where do they go from here then? Are we going to see Kemba Walker inserted back into the lineup or are do they have to make some sort of deal?

Timestamps:
0:00 – Intro
1:18 – Can Doc Rivers coach the Sixers to a championship?
7:18 – Should the Sixers trade both Tobias Harris and Ben Simmons?
15:38 – Damian Lillard apparently wants to play with Ben Simmons
26:51 – Realistic landing spots for Damian Lillard
37:20 – Benching Kemba Walker hasn’t done much for the New York Knicks
41:00 – Troy from Planet 76 Podcast gives his Sixers predictions and talks about the Process

Pascal Siakam, Toronto Raptors
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (12/5/21)

Only a one-game Atlantic slate last night as football season continues to dominate Sundays in the common household. Toronto gave us a good one though!

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 16-7
Boston Celtics 13-11
Philadelphia 76ers 12-11
New York Knicks 11-12
Toronto Raptors 11-13

Let’s talk about last night!

Pascal Siakam

Pascal Siakam was showing a lot of vintage Siakam vibes last night. Mid-range P was in the building and he was putting this team on his back whether the Wizards liked it or not. While he didn’t add much more outside of scoring, he was the only Raptor with more than 14 points. Siakam and Scottie Barnes were also the only starters in the positives for plus/minus in this game. This also now marks three straight games with at least 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists for Siakam!

James Johnson, Brooklyn Nets
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (12/3/21)

It was a bit of a busy night for the Atlantic and they come out of it with a 2-1 record. Philly and Brooklyn both with solid wins and Boston gave it a valiant effort at least.

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 16-6
Philadelphia 76ers 12-11
Boston Celtics 12-11
New York Knicks 11-11
Toronto Raptors 10-13

Let’s talk about last night!

James Johnson

Let’s highlight an unsung hero type of guy for Brooklyn. James Johnson has stepped up and played his role in a big way for this Nets team. He gets the nitty-gritty points off of rebounds, he cuts at the right times, he fills the lane at the correct areas, and he’s just playing some fundamentally sound basketball. When you need some tough defense, rebounds, and a timely bucket, Johnson has been that guy. Especially with all of the injuries and rest days that the others have needed, it’s nice to have someone like Johnson coming in to fill that spot. He ended the game against Minnesota with 11p & 6r.

Joel Embiid

You already know we had to highlight Joel Embiid again after last night’s game. Going down to Atlanta without their second-best scorer and Embiid on a bit of a cold streak, he stepped it up and pulled this team to a win. Clint Capela looked straight up hopeless going against Embiid all night. It was one of those old-fashioned BBQ chicken type of nights for Joel Embiid! Even all of the guys around Embiid except for Shake Milton had some great shooting nights as everyone had to be concerned with helping Capela on defense. Embiid finished with 28p, 12r, 4a & 2b on the way to a much-needed win.

Al Horford

This was one of the best offensive games that the Boston Celtics cashed in so far this season. It’s just a shame that the defensive effort wasn’t the same and Utah just had an even better offensive game than they did. They shot a blistering 51% from the field, but Utah one-upped them with 55%! Al Horford also was quite close to a triple-double in this contest. Big Al really had to step up with Robert Williams only playing 15 minutes. So what he did was drop 21p, 6r, & 9a. In the end, however, Utah just kept on outdoing any kind of firepower they brought.

Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (12/1/21)

The first game of December brought both Boston and Philadelphia fans a lot of frustrating and terrible basketball. Boston is probably a little less depressed because they won, but after that game, it didn’t feel like a win either.

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 15-6
Boston Celtics 12-10
New York Knicks 11-10
Philadelphia 76ers 11-11
Toronto Raptors 9-13

Let’s talk about last night!

Jayson Tatum

Jayson Tatum always seems to turn it up a couple of notches when playing against the Philadelphia 76ers. Part of it could be playing against Joel Embiid since they worked out together for a couple of offseasons, and the other part could just be the rivalry itself. Either way, it was a great game for Tatum to lead the way especially as one of the only guys who was making shots. Looking through Tatum’s career splits, it looks like December is actually one of his better months especially in terms of efficiency and offensive rating. This December sure did start in the right direction! He finished this game with 26 points and a career-high 16 rebounds!

Shake Milton

Shake Milton was one of the very few highlights for the Sixers as the whole team looked like the slowest moving, worst shooting team in a long time. Even while Milton was the only guy keeping the Sixers in the game during the first half, he didn’t get to play much at all in the second half and only finished with 22 minutes played. At one point, Milton went on an 8-0 run by himself in the first quarter! From top to bottom, coaches to players, this game was quite bad. Doc Rivers’ rotations and out-of-bounds or end-of-game play-calling continue to be the worst in the league.

James Harden, Brooklyn Nets
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (11/30/21)

Highlighted by a primetime game, the Atlantic was on full display. The battle of New York did not disappoint at all!

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 15-6
New York Knicks 11-10
Philadelphia 76ers 11-10
Boston Celtics 11-10
Toronto Raptors 9-13

Let’s talk about last night!

James Harden

James Harden was looking like Houston James Harden before putting on the extra weight! He was out there hooping and not worrying about semantics. During an interview the other day, he talked about not knowing when to be aggressive, when to be a playmaker, etc. During our latest episode, we talked about how he doesn’t have to choose, he can do them all in the same game! This is one of those times where he did that and the outcome was a nice win over the Knicks. Harden finished 38p, 10r, 8a, & 3s on 55% shooting from the floor!

Julius Randle

Julius Randle was another player in this game that looked back to the ways that we became accustomed to! The Knicks especially needed his all-star level of play with RJ Barrett only playing eight minutes and Kemba Walker getting ousted from the rotation for the time being. He helped big time in the 4th quarter to keep the Knicks in the game, but a costly mistake from Mitchell Robinson ended up sealing their fate. Either way, this was a great game for Randle as he dropped 24p, 9r, 8a, & 2s!

Scottie Barnes

We are here again to talk about the fact that Scottie Barnes continues to cement his case for Rookie of the Year. While the Raptors did lose this game against Memphis, Barnes had a VERY nice all-around game. Hustle on both sides of the ball and confidence in every facet looked like it was extremely high. His stat line at the end of the night was 19p, 7r, 3a, 2s, & 4b on 8-16 FG and 3-6 3P!

seth curry, philadelphia 76ers
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (11/29/21)

It was a pretty uneventful Monday night as the Sixers were the lone team with a game and it was only against the lowly Orlando Magic.

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 14-6
New York Knicks 11-9
Philadelphia 76ers 11-10
Boston Celtics 11-10
Toronto Raptors 9-12

Let’s talk about last night though!

Seth Curry

Seth Curry came to the rescue in the scoring department yet again! The theme of the Sixers having a great first quarter just to let it dwindle by the end also continued even against weak opponents. This time, however, they still get the win and get back on track after a bad stretch of 10 games with all of the injuries and Covid issues. Curry has been on the steadier presences on the team this year. He’s been great, especially during home games, as he’s been averaging around 17 ppg. There’s still much to be said about this team and whether or not they can have the success of previous years. Bonafide second and third scoring options are pretty much missing and it doesn’t seem like anything is going to change unless a couple of major trades happen. Ben Simmons coming back might help in the short term, but it doesn’t make this team an automatic contender like everyone thought they were last season.

Kemba Walker, New York Knicks
by Alex Fischbein

Kemba Walker gets benched | The Atlantic Files Ep205

On this week’s episode of the Atlantic Files, we welcome friend of the show, Tom Tran! Tom joined us to talk about Kemba Walker being benched, James Harden and the Brooklyn Nets’ offensive struggles, Joel Embiid back from Covid, and a debate about who the next number one pick should be!

The biggest news, by far, is that Kemba Walker is officially out of the rotation right now for the New York Knicks. This was nowhere close to the piece of news any of us thought we’d hear today. Coach Thibodeau must have been tired of giving up tons of leads when Kemba was in. Stat-wise, Kemba did have the worst +/- on the team!

James Harden and the Brooklyn Nets both struggled again on offense against a good opponent. This hasn’t been an uncommon theme so far this season. Harden has looked both out of shape and nothing close to what he was in Houston. When is it time to finally hit the panic button and send out the bat signal for Kyrie Irving?

Joel Embiid finally made his comeback debut from Covid. We’re all thankful that he got over the sickness as he talked about how rough of a battle it was for him. During his first game back, he posted a monster stat line but the Philadelphia 76ers took a tough loss in double overtime against Minnesota. Will the Sixers get back to their original hot streak ways?

Then, around the league, Michael Porter Jr was reportedly undergoing back surgery. He’s going to be out for the rest of the season and the Denver Nuggets are left to pick up the pieces without him and Jamal Murray. Also, are the Phoenix Suns contenders or pretenders?

Finally, we took a look at the upcoming NBA Draft and talked about who should be the next top pick. Who do you have between Chet Holmgren and Paolo Banchero?

Timecodes:
0:00 – Intro
2:13 – James Harden and the Brooklyn Nets struggles
18:05 – Phoenix Suns, contenders or pretenders?
25:45 – Michael Porter Jr. is out for the season
33:35 – Joel Embiid back from Covid but Sixers take a loss
51:20 – Kemba Walker is out of the New York Knicks rotation
54:45 – Chet Holmgren or Paolo Banchero, who should be the top pick?

marcus smart, boston celtics
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (11/28/21)

Only a one-game slate of some Atlantic division action with two of the bottom three teams going at it!

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 14-6
New York Knicks 11-9
Boston Celtics 11-10
Philadelphia 76ers 10-10
Toronto Raptors 9-12

Let’s talk about last night!

Marcus Smart

As I sat down to write this, I realized that we haven’t really highlighted Marcus Smart much at all this year. Sure, we might have mentioned his name on here and on the podcast, but not as the highlight guy. Well, this is his time to shine! Last night he guided the Boston Celtics to a nice win over a division opponent. He finished his well-rounded game with 21p, 8r, & 6a on 43.8% FG and 40% 3P. That guiding force is exactly what the Celtics need out of him more often, especially if Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are going to combine for only 24 points! It was that veteran leadership on both ends combined with the same leadership of Al Horford that willed this team to a victory!

Fred VanVleet

On the other side of last night’s game, Fred VanVleet tried to do much of the same. He put up 27p, 6r, 3a, & 2s, on 8-16 FG and 5-10 3P! So, his shooting stats were much better compared to Smart, but the end result didn’t follow the trend. There’s only so much he can do when the rest of the team shot 33.8% from the floor combined…

Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers, Sixers
by Alex Fischbein

Last night in the Atlantic (11/27/21)

I’m back everyone! Finally done moving enough that I can sit down and watch some basketball and talk about it for any of those that care to read and listen!

Standings:
Brooklyn Nets 14-6
New York Knicks 11-9
Boston Celtics 10-10
Philadelphia 76ers 10-10
Toronto Raptors 9-11

So let’s talk about last night!

Joel Embiid

If you didn’t tune in to the Sixers vs Timberwolves game last night, I really feel bad for you. Being at the game was even better, but I digress. Joel Embiid, in his first game back from Covid, put on a show for the home fans! He looked almost unstoppable until the last play of the game. His final stat line was 42p, 14r, 3a, 2b on 52.2% shooting from the floor. The superstar level Embiid was back, but he did seem a little skinnier and even more out of breath than usual. Hopefully, Covid didn’t take too much out of him. The game itself started off terribly for Philly only for them to come roaring back and force overtime. Then the sequence from D’Angelo Russell and Andre Drummond to force double overtime was even crazier. When it’s all said and done though, the Sixers could not complete the comeback and ultimately fell as their other three scorers only shot 37% or worse.

Alec Burks

The Knicks grabbed the lone Atlantic win last night and it was due in large part to Alec Burks! Derrick Rose and Kemba Walker were out and Julius Randle put up another stinker of a game, but Alec Burks with some help from Evan Fournier and RJ Barrett willed the team to a win. Burks was especially hot from three and he started looking very comfortable on every type of shot imaginable. Having a guy that can heat up like a microwave coming off of your bench and able to make spot starts is always a great commodity.

DeAndre’ Bembry

Brooklyn dropped another one to a top team from the West. They really looked like they just lacked scoring and we all know someone that could help in that department. If James Harden is only contributing 12 points, then you know it’s a tough game. DeAndre’ Bembry chipped in with some great minutes though. He was the only positive player in the starting five! 18p, 9r, & 2s was the line he finished with.

LeBron James, Isaiah Stewart, Fight
by Alex Fischbein

LeBron James draws blood | The Atlantic File

On this week’s episode of the Atlantic Files, LeBron James draws blood from Isaiah Stewart, Luke Walton loses his job, Jayson Tatum is good again, plus Cade Cunningham is finally making his Rookie of the Year argument.

By now, everyone has probably seen the fight between LeBron James and Isaiah Stewart. Stewart had some serious blood coming from his eye and he was rightfully pissed off. All of these reports say that James didn’t mean any harm, but the video seems to say otherwise. Also, does anyone really buy that LeBron James, of all people, couldn’t “track down” Stewart’s phone number? 

Luke Walton, now former coach of the Sacramento Kings, is on the lookout for another job. If there’s anyone who knows chaos out of the NBA franchises, it’s definitely the Kings. Hopefully, they don’t think that this is going to fix their entire team and all of their problems. That would just somehow be very Kings-esque though.

A couple of episodes ago, we talked about how Jayson Tatum wasn’t pulling his own weight. Since then, both Tatum and the Boston Celtics have been much improved. Tatum’s percentages and all-around game have gone up and looked worlds better. Could a Jaylen Brown for Bradley Beal trade work out? 

On top of that, we discussed Cade Cunningham starting to show his true potential!

Timecodes:
0:00 – Intro
1:38 – Golden State Warriors are highly lethal
11:42 – LeBron James and Isaiah Stewart fight
22:10 – Cade Cunningham showing his true potential
29:28 – Jayson Tatum looking more like Jayson Tatum
39:10 – Luke Walton fired by the Sacramento Kings