Nick Nurse Praises Ricky Council IV's Work Ethic

With the Philadelphia 76ers being riddled with injuries, especially in their guard department, as well as the mass exodus of several guards at the trade deadline, Nick Nurse has decided to turn to the Delaware Blue Coats for Ricky Council IV and Terquavion Smith, to help bolster his lineup.

While both players have gotten multiple opportunities, Council has received more time as of late, playing an average of 12 minutes throughout February leading into Monday night's match.

Given that he's spent some serious time with the team, Nurse had more than a few good things to say about his play style, highlighting his ability to slam the glass, while also being a worthy scoring option.

"Ricky is an incredible athlete, who plays really hard, he makes things happen, he uses that to be a defender and a rebounder first and foremost," Nurse told reporters, "that's a pretty good start, then he'll battle on the offensive glass and get a bucket or two.

While Monday night's match appeared to be just another match for the G-League star, Nurse spotted a huge proving point in the fourth quarter, when the 22-year-old went up and sank two free throws, which would extend the Sixers' lead to three points with less than 11 seconds left in the match.

"How about that situation for him to step up and knock down two free throws in that situation there, a lot of courage, a lot of confidence in himself," stated Nurse.

The Sixers head coach has been impressed by Council's work ethic during his time with the team, so he was happy to see his hard work pay off against Cleveland.

"I've said it about him a lot but he does everything hard, everyday, every walk through, every practice, he's focused and ready to go," explained Nurse, "it's good to see him reap some rewards from that."