The Philadelphia 76ers are in Portland on Monday night to take on the Trail Blazers after losses to the Pacers and Nuggets to start off their road trip. The Trail Blazers are in the same boat as the Sixers, having lost their last two games to the Bulls and Spurs. They will be looking to get themselves back in the win column and keep the Sixers on a losing streak.
Sixers game info
Who: Philadelphia 76ers (29-15) at Portland Trail Blazers (13-33)
When: 10:00 pm EST
Where: Moda Center, Portland, OR
Watch: NBA League Pass, FUBO Sports
Sixers vs Nuggets betting info
Spread: Philadelphia 76ers -10| Portland Trail Blazers +10
Moneyline: Philadelphia 76ers -470 | Portland Trail Blazers +360
Total: Over/Under 223
The Latest on the Sixers
The Sixers are coming into Portland, having lost their last two games after a six-game winning streak. Against the Nuggets, the Sixers were missing four starters as De’Anthony Melton, Tobias Harris, Tyrese Maxey, and Joel Embiid were all out with injuries or illness. While Melton and Robert Covington are still listed as out with back and knee injuries, the Sixers trio of Harris, Embiid, and Maxey are all listed as questionable, but hopefully, they’ll be in the lineup tonight.
The Sixers finally have a good bench unit behind its starters, and that showed against the Nuggets, who had a healthy and full lineup on Saturday night. Paul Reed started at center and finished the night with 30 points and 13 rebounds against two-time MVP Nikola Jokic. Kelly Oubre Jr. had 25 points and both Marcus Morris Sr. and Pat Beverley had 17 points each. While the Sixers lost the game, they were in it until the last few moments, and it’s a testament to the quality of their reserves as well as head coach Nick Nurse.
The Sixers very well could be without their top three scorers for tonight’s game as well, but that shouldn’t be much of a problem if the team plays as well as it did against the Nuggets. If they can get some repeat performances from Reed and Morris, they should be fine. Pat Beverley, whenever he’s given the chance to start, has shown up and will continue to do so. What the Sixers will need, if they’re to win, is for Nico Batum and the other reserves to at least give the team some support. They can’t be counting on Reed to repeat his performance against Denver.
Latest on the Trail Blazers
The Trail Blazers have some weapons in Anfernee Simons, Shaedon Sharpe, Jerami Grant, and Malcolm Brogdon, but they’ve not been able to put it all together this season. Sharpe will miss tonight’s game as he continues to battle an abdominal injury, which has kept him out of the lineup since January 11th. The team will rely heavily on Simons and Grant to get a bulk of the scoring done and hope that Brogdon and DeAndre Ayton can put up some quality points as well.
The Blazers are currently 13-33 on the season and sit in 14th place in the Western Conference. They’ve not been able to put together any type of consistent production throughout the year. While they have talented players, the team just hasn’t come together as they had hoped. Players like Brogdon and Grant have seen their names in trade rumors over the past couple of months, as well as a lot more recently, as the NBA trade deadline approaches.
While they’ve been having a tough season, they do get some quality games in, albeit against opponents such as the Houston Rockets, who they beat last week 137-131. In that game, they had six players score in double figures, with Simons and Grant both over 20 points. They can put some points on the board, but it probably won’t be against a very good defensive team like the Sixers.
What to watch for tonight
A late-night, West Coast game that may have the Sixer’s top three scorers all missing? What would be the reason to watch? First and foremost, it’s to see if Paul Reed can put together another performance like he did against the Nuggets. 30 points and 13 rebounds on 14-21 shooting was a career night for Reed, and if he’s given a chance to start again tonight, he could find himself in a groove and break out with another big night against a team that will have a hard time containing him.
As for the rest of the Sixers, look for some rare Furkan Korkmaz and Jaden Springer minutes. The two players, who rarely see the court, could be able to get some time and provide some excitement for Sixers fans. Springer, who had a great season last year in the G-League and a great preseason, hasn’t been able to crack head coach Nick Nurse’s lineup. For what reasons, we’re not really sure, as other players have not contributed, and with Robert Covington out for over a month now, it would seem like Springer’s defense would be a welcome addition to the team.
Now, if the Sixers find a way to get either Maxey or Embiid onto the court for tonight’s game, then all bets are off, and the Sixers should run circles around the Trail Blazers, so it’ll be something to look for as the game gets closer. Either way, the Sixers have been an exciting team throughout the first half of the season, and tonight should provide another fun game for basketball fans.
Prediction
Sixers 121 – Trail Blazers 113
