Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse pointed to rebounding, offensive execution and a slow start as key reasons for his team’s 106-93 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.
The defeat ended Philadelphia’s three-game winning streak and dropped the team to 3-1. The Pistons improved to 3-0 despite playing without injured Jalen Duren, while the 76ers were missing Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe.
Nurse acknowledged that Philadelphia struggled to establish its offense, even as the team fought to get back into the game after falling behind early.
“I think the rebounding was a huge factor,” Nurse said. “I just again, I didn’t think we executed offensively very well for good stretches of the game. And we got off to a really slow start.”
The Pistons opened the contest on a 15-1 run and led by as many as 21 points in the first half. Philadelphia mounted a push but never took the lead, eventually losing by 13.
Nurse was also critical of the team’s shooting and offensive flow.
“It just wasn’t very pretty on three-point shooting, free throw shooting and offensive execution,” he said.
Jaylen Brown struggled to find his rhythm, finishing with 16 points on 5-for-20 shooting. Asked about Brown’s performance, Nurse said the forward faced heavy traffic but also had opportunities to convert near the basket.
“I think there’s some more volume up and shoot threes,” Nurse said. “He obviously had a lot of traffic in there tonight. And I think he got to some good spots down there and just didn’t get them in there.”
Nurse was more encouraged by Adem Bona, who recorded six points, 13 rebounds and three blocks in 25 minutes.
“I was really happy with him,” Nurse said. “I thought he was really happy with the way he played,” before clarifying that Bona had made an impact in a way he had not consistently done earlier.
Rebounding remains a concern for Philadelphia, particularly with several frontcourt players unavailable. The 76ers were outrebounded 54-37 by Detroit, including a 15-9 disadvantage on the offensive glass.
“We’ve got to do it by committee,” Nurse said. “All five guys got to rebound.”
He added that the team’s defensive rebounding numbers were not good enough and that everyone needed to contribute more.
Nurse also described Philadelphia’s changing interior rotation as a work in progress, with multiple players filling in at center. He said the team needed its injured frontcourt players to return to establish more consistency.
The 76ers will look to respond Wednesday when they visit the Indiana Pacers.
