The Philadelphia 76ers got back in the win column Monday night with a 101-96 victory over the Orlando Magic. While multiple Sixers had a night to forget shooting-wise, one took it upon himself to carry the scoring load.
Seth Curry is in the midst of a career year this season, and Monday was his latest stellar performance. The sharpshooting guard was the Sixers' leading scorer against the Magic, racking up 24 points while shooting an incredible 10-13 from the floor.
Matchups like these are what makes Curry such a valuable piece to the Sixers. When Orlando rolled out Wendell Carter Jr. and Mo Bamba in the starting lineup together, it was clear their focus was on slowing down Joel Embiid. They might have been successful in containing the All-Star center, but Curry managed to make them pay for not giving him enough attention. Most notably in the second half, when he picked apart the Magic's zone defense.
Players and coaches were quick to applaud Curry for his shooting masterclass during the postgame media availability. Sixers head coach Doc Rivers was the first to bring up how crucial this performance was in securing the win.
“He was great. He was sitting in the corner against their zone probably five other times, and you would think we would put it on the floor, drive it, and get it back to him because he clearly had it going. He's been playing great, been playing steady. They're trying different coverages on him. I thought earlier in the year he may struggle with that. Now he's handling it very well. Really happy with how he's playing overall,” said Rivers.
Later on, Tobias Harris gave his thoughts on what Curry was able to do on a night where others on the Sixers didn't have it going offensively.
“Seth [Curry] had it going on all game for us. From the beginning of the game, made some big shots. Really made them kind of think twice about the zone [defense], just the looks he was able to get. He was letting it go tonight, and we really needed that effort,” Harris said postgame.
The point about making the defense think twice is what stands out the most. This game is not the first time Curry has had an opposing defense second-guessing themselves. It is also one of the key reasons why Daryl Morey brought the deadeye shooter to Philadelphia.
Since arriving, Curry has been a perfect complement to Joel Embiid. He might not be a star in any sense of the word, but he can still score points in bunches when given the chance. Because of this, defenses are forced to pick their poison when it comes to defending the Sixers.
Staying aggressive and hunting shots is something Curry struggled with last season, but it has been a non-issue through the first 20 games of the year. When he is shooting the lights out to this degree, the team is near impossible to defend. He will continue to be a key piece of Philly as the season rolls on.
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