Furkan Korkmaz, the 26th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, has spent his entire NBA career with the 76ers. In this episode of Reel Talk presented by Crypto.com, the swingman discusses six of his favorite plays from the 2021-22 NBA regular season, all of which came in the team’s 113-106 victory over Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and the Miami Heat in Philadelphia on March 21.
Q1 – 00:04.2: Furkan Korkmaz makes driving dunk (Shake Milton assists)
"My mentality here was, like, just attack the rim when I see Tyler Herro close out. And then, I took the drive and just dunked the ball. I don’t know how I did it, because I just got into the game. I think that was a good start for that game."
Q2 – 10:33: Furkan Korkmaz makes 6-foot two point shot (Shake Milton assists)
"I see it again, Tyler Herro closing out and, as always, I try to use my pump fake because I knew he was sprinting at me. Then, I see the defensive player in the corner, so he’s just going to fake help, and then he’s going to go back to his man; that’s why I gave him a little fake and then I tried a kind of floater. I really trust my pump fake, because everybody’s jumping. If they don’t jump, I’m just going to shoot. So, here, I just pump fake and go to the rim."
Q2 – 08:01: Furkan Korkmaz makes 27-foot three point shot (Shake Milton assists)
"In this position, as soon as Shake (Milton) gets the ball, my first thing was just “run the floor.” If I’m open, he’s going to hit me; I know that. All year, we’ve been talking about those kickouts and forcing the guy in front of you to make a decision. It’s always a good feeling to make the three, especially when we’re playing in Philly. You see the crowd stand up and cheer for you. That was exciting."
Q3 – 00:47.6: Furkan Korkmaz makes 28-foot three point shot (Shake Milton assists)
"I think this one was after a timeout; my first idea was trying to get DeAndre (Jordan) open, because we knew that either he or I were going to be open. I ended up with a three. I think from the beginning of the game, we set the tone. We didn’t let them play their basketball, and we told them it’s not going to be easy in our house tonight. So, it’s always a good feeling to make that three."
Q4 – 10:12: Furkan Korkmaz steals pass from Bam Adebayo
"I’m really good friends with Matisse (Thybulle), and he’s the king of the steals; I really learned a lot from him. My first idea here was to take the charge, because when you see bigs coming through, you want to try to get the charge instead of meeting him at the rim. I put myself in a good position, and (Bam Adebayo) didn’t attack; he just stopped, and I knew that when he stopped, he was going to look to pass because I think he’s a good passer who reads the floor well. When I got the steal, that was huge."
Q4 – 04:13: Furkan Korkmaz makes 27-foot three point shot (Tobias Harris assists)
"This possession was also after a timeout. We basically wanted to bait the defense with Tyrese (Maxey) and Tobias (Harris) drives, which gives me a wide open look as soon as I touch the ball. I knew that I was going to shoot it, and as soon as I shoot the ball, I could tell it was going in. I’m super happy about that possession because, as a player, we feel really good coming out of timeouts because you feel like you executed what the coach drew up really well. I think, as a team, that’s just textbook."
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