After a lengthy All-Star break (which seems to go by slower and slower each year), the Philadelphia 76ers are finally returning to action tonight. They’ll take on the 25-28 Brooklyn Nets at home, in the Wells Fargo Center.
The Sixers are entering this match-up riding a decent amount of momentum. They’ve won their last three games, which included a pretty big “statement win” over the Kawhi Leonard-led LA Clippers.
The Sixers organization also had a pretty successful All-Star weekend. They sent two players, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, and both looked pretty dominant throughout the highly competitive All-Star game.
Simmons posted 17 points, 6 boards, and 5 assists while Embiid poured in a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Embiid looked particularly effective as it was his first game playing without his custom hand splint. As I mentioned in my “What should you expect from the Sixers in the second half of the season?” article, a 100% healthy JoJo will be a force to be reckoned with moving forward.
Ben Simmons Injury
News broke shortly after 1:00 PM ET that Simmons was experiencing lower back stiffness this morning. He has been officially listed as “questionable” for tonight’s game.
Nets Playing Shorthanded
The Nets, on the other hand, have their own fair share of injuries they’re dealing with. Both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant are currently out, meaning the Nets will be rolling up with a shell of the team that lost to the Sixers in last year’s playoffs.
Al Horford Continuing his Bench Role
Per a plethora of sources, it was announced earlier in the week that Al Horford would be continuing his role as the team’s sixth man. The Sixers have struggled to contain the Net’s bigs in recent history, hopefully, the continued use of Horford as a bench asset will change that.
Tip-off begins at 8:00 PM, eastern time.
Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
