Sixers guard Lou Williams dropped 18 points and dished out six assists in the Sixers 97-94 win on Friday.

While the Sixers have slipped into obscurity the last few years, and especially the last few weeks as the Phillies made another prolonged playoff push, they may finally be seeing a nice young nucleus develop.

Thaddeus Young and Andre Iguodala were known commodities entering the season. Lou Williams, stepping in as a starter in place of the departed Andre Miller, is starting to show flashes of being a legit starter.

Williams posted team-highs in points (18), rebounds (9) and assists (6) as the Sixers (3-2) squeaked out a 97-94 victory over the winless New Jersey Nets (0-6).

Granted, the Nets aren’t exactly the best measuring stick in the NBA, but Williams still had six assists and no turnovers. Playing 38 minutes without a turnover against any NBA team is something to build around, especially for a point guard finally getting extended playing time for the first time in his career.

Williams’ play kept rookie Jrue Holiday on the bench per coach Eddie Jordan’s decision.

Iguodala added 16 points, and sharpshooter Jason Kapono dropped 14 in the win.

The Sixers next play at Detroit on Sunday at 1 p.m.