PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers are currently sitting at 14-10 as they head into a road matchup with the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. A big reason for that success is the play of Tyrese Maxey as the 6-year guard has taken another leap in his stardom, but the role players have done some good things around him.
One of those important role players is Dominick Barlow who the Sixers signed to a two-way deal in the offseason. He has started 12 of the 15 games he’s played and averaging 8.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.1 blocks and is somebody who doesn’t need the ball to be effective.
When considering the Sixers have players who need the ball such as Maxey, Joel Embiid, and Paul George, it helps to have somebody like Barlow who can score buckets just by moving without the basketball. He is also in the right spots defensively so he can give the Sixers a big lift on both ends.
“Very good,” coach Nick Nurse says of Barlow’s basketball IQ. “He continues to impress me in that area. So much, as we were doing some schemes defensively, and he kinda said ‘Well, what if this is on the other side of the floor? What is changing or not changing?’”
It’s those types of questions that will help push a player forward. Barlow already plays with a ton of energy and looks to make an impact to help the Sixers succeed. All he wants is to help contribute to winning and this is the type of player that every contender needs.
“I was like ‘That’s a really good question.’ I had to tell him from what we’ve seen it’s about 90% on this side, which is why we’re working on it, but let’s go over there and tell you what it looks like from the other side,” Nurse continued. “So, very high IQ. He knows what he’s doing. He plays hard. It’s been a really pleasant surprise.”
As the Sixers move on, one can assume Barlow is going to play an important role in what this team wants to do.