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Miami Heat Scouting the Enemy: Philadelphia 76ers

By John Jablonka

Ben Simmons #25, Tobias Harris #12, Al Horford #42, Josh Richardson #0, and Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Ben Simmons #25, Tobias Harris #12, Al Horford #42, Josh Richardson #0, and Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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Toronto Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard (2) defends Philadelphia 76ers guard Jimmy Butler (23) (Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images) /

Jimmy Butler on the Milk Carton

One of the main reasons why the 76ers were able to reach the Conference semi-finals and were just a shot away from making the Conference finals was because of Butler. Despite all of that, they still pulled the trigger on trading him, and for good reasons.

Now, yes, talent-wise the gap between Butler and Richardson is quite wide, particularly on the offensive side. One player is arguably a top-15 player, while the other ranks 86th according to ESPN and 71st according to Sports Illustrated.

However, the gap on defense isn’t as wide and the fit should be much better. The 76ers already have three players that require the ball to be their best selves in Ben Simmons, Tobias Harris, and Embiid. Having another ball-dominant player may have not been what’s best for this team.

Richardson is the ideal player for them though. He can shoot the ball, play off the ball, and knows his role. With that in mind, he shouldn’t be asked to do much on the offensive end, therefore allowing him to focus on defense.

By replacing Butler with Richardson, it will let the other three players get the ball more frequently, which could result in them playing much better alongside each other.

That was the first major move the 76ers made this off-season, but the acquisition that made them the winners is because of Al Horford.

He was the Embiid stopper and it isn’t that big of an exaggeration. Per NBA.com stats, Horford was matched-up with Horford the most out of any player, with 184 possessions across four games. In those possessions, Embiid scored a total of 46 points on 40 percent shooting.

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