Quentin Grimes, Lonnie Walker IV lead Sixers past Jazz

Lonnie Walker IV and Quentin Grimes combined for 50 points to power the Sixers past the Utah Jazz in a game of extended runs.

Here's what I saw.

Likes

- The only way to execute a watchable tank is to play young guys. Playing comfortable veterans their regular allotment of minutes is the worst of both worlds. Andre Drummond certainly isn't inspiring anyone with his brand of play, and the team usually gets waxed with him on the court. 

While I can't say it was entirely on his shoulders that the Sixers trailed by 16 in the first quarter, the energy jumped up several levels once Nurse went younger and bouncier with his lineups. Nurse let those guys roll to the tune of a 35-10 run, flipping the deficit into a nine-point lead.

- A military veteran stationed in Bahrain got to surprise his family in his return home during the first half. That was heart-warming.

- It's very easy to go at this front office with pitch forks, but I think they've learned a valuable lesson from the Guerschon Yabusele experience. Many of their moves through the league's transaction season involved getting players under contract for multiple years. Not just one-year, rest-of-season deals. They found players worthy of both tryouts and some insurance beyond this season. No matter how off the rails this campaign goes and how bleak the future may or may not be, there are some pieces worth keeping around beyond this season. 

The most notable one is obviously Grimes, who is a free agent this summer. But he's a restricted free agent with Bird rights. The Sixers control his future. Meanwhile, Justin Edwards and Walker are under team control heading into the offseason. Same applies to Jared Butler. But if his playing time since the trade deadline is any indication, he's far from a lock to be back.

- Adem Bona has freaking pogo sticks in his legs. That guy was volleyball-spiking weak Jazz attempts at the rim all game long. He's still quite raw, but you can see he's getting more consistent with some of the fundamentals. He did a good job of holding his box-outs at the basket, using his strength to hold off opponents for rebounds. If you look close enough, you can see him guarding on the balls of his feet. Bona has some gifts that make him a suitable defender in space anyway. But the fact that he's both conditioned and disciplined enough to not go flat-footed is huge. He alternated between containing Jazz ball-handlers and booking back to the basket to protect the rim throughout the game.

Dislikes

- It may be best for, uh, the team's long-term plans, but it certainly does not help the current viewing experience that Drummond was allocated six of the team's first 13 shots. Honestly, I can't disprove that some of his misses aren't just attempts at pumping his offensive rebounding numbers. He may get the benefit of the doubt because Lord knows that man alligator-arms everything at the rim. But, some of the misses are just so well placed for him to recover the initial shot that you can't help but wonder.

And the above-the-break three trend is not a sight for sore eyes. The opposing big is 65 percent of the way down the court by the time the miss comes off the rim and it's a touchdown pass for an easy transition basket most of the time.

- Again, the team refuses to admit that their eyes are locked on anything other than the Play-In tournament, yet Nick Nurse does things like starting Quentin Grimes at point guard. The guy lacks floor vision and his handle crumbles in the face of extended ball pressure. Stop this madness.

- Contesting into a shooter's side while they're elevated for a three. A youngster mistake as old as time.

Spare thoughts

- Drummond is enjoying the best free throw percentage of his career this season. Go figure. 

- This was maybe the fifth home game all season in which the away team did not have a vocal contingent of supporters present. A rarity this season, the Sixers were treated like the home team in their own building.

The Sixers (22-41) will visit the Atlanta Hawks (30-34) on Monday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., Eastern time. You can watch the game on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

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