PHILADELPHIA _ This was more to the 76ers' liking.
They looked like contenders in the second half of Thursday's 127-108 home-opening victory against the undermanned Chicago Bulls two days after being blown out by the Boston Celtics.
It can be argued that the difference was matter of the opponent. On Tuesday in Boston, the Sixers (1-1) lost to a Celtics squad favored to reach the NBA Finals. Meanwhile in the Bulls (0-1), they faced a squad coming off a 27-55 record and missing three players.
Starting forward Lauri Markkanen will be sidelined until around late November with an elbow injury. Kris Dunn, the starting point guard, missed the game due to the birth of his first child, a son. And Denzel Valentine hasn't been able to play since the start of the preseason with a sprained ankle.
Taking advantage, the Sixers broke the game open by outscoring the Bulls, 40-20, in the third quarter. That gave them a commanding 105-78, advantage.
Ben Simmons had his first triple-double of the season and 13th of his career. He finished with 13 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists, two blocks and one steal. Meanwhile, Joel Embiid had a team-high 30 points on 9-for-14 shooting to go with 12 rebounds and four blocks.
In all, the Sixers had eight players _ including all five starters _ score in double figures.
Markelle Fultz's performance was the fan favorite. He had 12 points on 5-for-15 shooting. Fultz scored 10 of his points in the fourth quarter.
He received a standing ovation after making a 3-pointer with 8 minutes, 49 seconds remaining.
That shot put the Sixers up 108-88. The 2017 first-overall draft pick received a standing ovation and heard chats of 'Fultz, Fultz, Fultz, Fultz' after making the basket.
He looked more comfortable as the game wore on and was being encouraged by crowd.
Zach LaVine had a team-high 30 points for the Bulls.
Early on, Fultz passed up several open looks like he did against the Celtics. It was obvious that the Bulls didn't respect his ability to make shots from the outside, sagging 14 feet off him.
As a result, Fultz was mostly a nonfactor in the first half. He did, however, attempt one long 2-pointer in the second quarter that rimmed out.
But the crowd was supportive of the player who has relearned how to shoot after overcoming the "yips." He received a standing ovation in the second quarter after making a 13-footer on his fifth shot. Fultz missed his first four shots. Those six shots were his only attempts in the first half.
The Sixers have decided to start him over JJ Redick to help him develop and build his confidence. Redick, however, gets the start in the beginning of the second half.
Sixers coach Brett Brown said he doesn't have a timeline for how long he'll stick with Fultz as a starter.
"I am saying it is all up in the air," he said. "I'm not putting a fence around what I do with him or with you all, just so that I am honest. I'm not saying I am doing this for the whole season. I'm not saying I'm just doing this tonight."
Brown is just feeling it out, he said.
He said he'll "pull out of it" if he decides it's not good for anybody.
Brown added that he considered bringing Fultz off the bench instead. However, Brown compares bringing Redick off the bench to the San Antonio Spurs' deciding to use Manu Ginobili in a reserve role during Brown's time as an assistant there.
"JJ has to be factored into this," Brown said. "This decision I've made doesn't make it right. But it sure has made it studied. And we thought it out a lot."
The Sixers are still without their top three offseason acquisitions _ Wilson Chandler, Mike Muscala and Zhaire Smith _ and reserve guard Jerryd Bayless. Smith is sidelined until December with a broken left foot. Bayless (sprained left knee) is a couple of weeks away from returning. Brown said the team will be without Chandler (strained left hamstring) and Muscala (sprained right ankle) for a while.
Chandler said he hopes to return on Oct. 27 for the home game against the Charlotte Hornets.
The 31-year-old, who was acquired in a trade from the Denver Nuggets, said it has been frustrating not being able to play. He's been sidelined since suffering his injury in the Sept. 28 preseason opener against Melbourne United.
"When you watch the games like the Boston game, from the sidelines or me at home, it's kind of frustrating not to be out there helping your team," Chandler said. "Not saying I would have made the game go differently, but I would have been out there helping the guys or going through the same struggles with them."
