Jerami Grant Emerging As Key Piece For 76ers
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) --- The 76ers are in Cleveland to run with a red hot Cavaliers team tonight.
Philadelphia is coming off a hard-fought 91-85 loss in Atlanta on Saturday night as they nearly snapped the Hawks now 19-game winning streak. It doesn't get any easier tonight as the Sixers match-up with a Cleveland team that has won ten in a row.
Everyone knows the 76ers started the season 0-17. But since then they have shown improvement, going 10-21 since that long, winless start. The 76ers are getting a lot of contributions from a lot of young players and that includes rookie forward Jerami Grant. The second-round pick out of Syracuse has emerged as a key piece off the bench for head coach Brett Brown this season.
"I think it's going well for me," Grant tells KYW Newsradio. "At the beginning of the season I was hurt so it was tough to make that adjustment (to the NBA), but now I think we're starting to get things rolling and we're starting to win a couple games."
Listen to Jerami Grant with KYW's Matt Leon:
Grant is averaging 5.5 points and 2.7 rebounds in 33 games this season. He's also has been a pleasant surprise from the perimeter. He is shooting 40.4% (21-52) from behind the three-point arc this season. Not bad for a player who did not make a three (0-5) last season in college at Syracuse.
"I try to get to the gym as much as possible and shoot as much as I can," Grant says.
"I just try to work on my weak points that people want me to work on and things like that. So I've been working on my shot and my perimeter game a lot more lately."
Grant says grabbing some wins here as of late has made things a lot more fun for everyone.
"It makes the whole environment in the locker room a different place for us," Grant says. "Everybody's up and the energy's up and I think from (the beginning of the season) to now is extremely different."
Philadelphia won the first match-up with the Cavaliers back on January 5th at the Center, 95-92. Cleveland was shorthanded that night, playing without the injured LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. The Cavs are now at full strength and Grant knows they'll be ready to play tonight.
"(We) expect a great team to come out and compete," Grant says. "We've just got to get out there and play as hard as we can and we've got to compete with more intensity than they come out with."
The 76ers and Cavaliers tip-off tonight at 7:00pm.
You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.