PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers will need all hands on deck when they host the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday night. Considering the Sixers are still missing players like Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey, they need some players to step up and contribute to the team.
Andre Drummond is one of them. The 14-year veteran missed the first two games with back spasms, and the Sixers missed opportunities to have him on the court. When he’s right, Drummond is an elite rebounder who can do a lot of different things on the court.
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In Sunday’s 109-103 win over the Trail Blazers, Drummond came off the bench and had six points, 17 rebounds, four assists and two steals. He was outstanding against Portland’s Donovan Klingen and gave Philadelphia a presence on some lobs the Trail Blazers attempted and helped the Sixers win the rebounding battle on the night 51-49.
“We definitely missed his presence the last few games when he was out,” Quentin Grimes said of Drummond. “You could see how much he impacted the game in terms of rebounding and defense, and he made some timely shots. He was big for us today.”
With Philadelphia leading by 10 points in the fourth quarter, Portland All-Star Deni Avdija attempted a lob, but Drummond broke it up and Grimes scored on a layup. This was a huge sequence for Philadelphia, and it allowed the Sixers to extend their lead.
“He looks really fresh and good,” coach Nick Nurse added. “I think the biggest thing is he just clogged the paint. They probably hit a high ball behind us tonight. When we played them there (Portland), it was like, non-stop, it felt like, right? They put a lot of pressure on you and you go downhill with everybody who can score, and usually the big guys sometimes get pushed uphill and help, but we did a little bit of both.”
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Drummond was able to keep the Sixers in this state all night, and without him, they probably wouldn’t have won that game.
“I thought we plugged the hole, and then when they were throwing the ball, we came back and knocked some down, and obviously, he rebounded really well tonight,” Nurse added. “I know we gave up some offensive rebounds, but overall, we won the rebounding game, and a lot of that was due to Drum.”
After the win, Drummond lay on his back in the locker room as he clearly went through a lot to get into Sunday’s game. The two-time All-Star revealed that he prepared a lot for this game and provided 35 minutes of bench time for the 76ers.
“Yeah, it took me a lot of time to get ready,” Drummond laughed. “Not expected to play 35 minutes, but I did what I was supposed to do and we got a great win.”
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The 76ers begin a three-game road trip on Tuesday against the Denver Nuggets.
This article originally appeared on 76ers Wired: Multiple Sixers single out Andre Drummond after win over Trail Blazers