The Philadelphia 76ers are back home to take on the Phoenix Suns after demolishing the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday, 123-94. The Suns will be looking to get into the win column after suffering four straight losses, while the Sixers will be looking to build on a solid performance against the Nets. While the Sixers are still without Kelly Oubre Jr., KJ Marti,n and Jared McCain, they should have the rest of the team ready to step up against the Suns.
Sixers game information
Who: Phoenix Suns (15-18) at Philadelphia 76ers (14-19)
When: 7 p.m. EST
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass, AFN
Latest on the Sixers
The Sixers Had lost the final two games of their West Coast road trip before heading into Brooklyn and demolishing the Nets. Eric Gordon was the only player on the team that didn’t score, while the Sixers were led by Joel Embiid, who had 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists in just 29 minutes on the floor. Paul George finished with 17 points, Tyrese Maxey had 18 points, and Caleb Martin came back strong with 17 points on 7-8 shooting, including 2-3 on his three-point attempts. Although the team didn’t shoot well from long range, they had enough going on to squash the Nets.
With Embiid, when he’s on the floor, looking more and more like the Joel of the past few years, Paul George has started to come around, and it might just be that he’s feeling completely healthy after battling two knee injuries to start the season.
Over the past three games, George has averaged 22 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He’s managed to shoot 52.2% from the field and 45.5% on his three-point attempts over the course of the last three games. It seems that while it may have taken a little time, George is getting comfortable on the court, and it’s shown.
What the Sixers need now is for Tyrese Maxey to get out of the mini-slump he’s had over the last three games. He’s averaged just 19.7 points over that span of games while shooting just 39.6% from the floor and 31.8% from distance. If the Sixers are going to take down the Suns and continue getting wins, they’re going to need Maxey at his best, and he should get some better looks now that George and Embiid are back to being regularly on the floor, as the trio is still getting used to playing together.
Latest on the Suns
The Suns are coming into Philadelphia on a four-game losing streak. On Saturday, they were trounced by the Pacers, 126-108, after losses to the Grizzlies, Mavericks, and Warriors. The Suns’ last victory was over the Nuggets on Christmas Day. With the losing streak comes the news that the team has announced that they’ll be removing Jusuf Nurkic and Bradley Beal from the starting rotation, starting tonight in Philadelphia.
The Suns still represent a formidable challenge for the Sixers. They’re sixth in the league in three-point shooting and have the tenth-best offense. While their defense is in the bottom third, the team can put up points quickly if they get rolling.
Kevin Durant and Devin Booker are leading the team this season with 27.6 and 24.6 points per game, respectively, while Beal has been putting up 17.8 points per game. After the big three of the Suns, teams still have to deal with Tyus Jones, who will be back in the lineup after missing Saturday’s game, and Grayson Allen, who’s averaging 10.5 points per game but can really light it up if he gets hot. Jones is shooting a career-best 43.5% on his threes this season, so the Suns can attack from any position on the floor.
What to watch for tonight
While Nurkic is returning from a three-game suspension and will come off the bench, the team will need his 7’0″ 290 lb frame if they’re going to contain Embiid in the low post. Containing Embiid is not easy for anyone to do, so Joel should be able to have his way with the Suns tonight. If the Sixers are going to win the game, they’ll need a great defensive effort, and that will start with Embiid and Caleb Martin up front, while Maxey will have to tend to Booker.
What the Sixers do have is a Guerschon. He’s like the Hulk except not angry. Yabusele has been averaging 10.4 points and 5 rebounds in 25.4 minutes per game over his last five games, but he’s provided the energy and enthusiasm that the Sixers have been sorely lacking to start the season. After a big dunk on Saturday against the Nets, the whole team was fired up, and he’s been at the center of that. Yabusele can really have his way with the Suns’ defense if he keeps these minutes up.
The big surprise for the Sixers on Saturday was rookie Justin Edwards. In just 23 minutes, Edwards finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds while shooting 4-7 from the floor and 3-6 on his three-pointers. Edwards, just a year ago, was considered to be a top-five draft prospect and had a rough start to his season at Kentucky.
While he finished strong, the 6’7″ forward went undrafted and signed with the Sixers, his hometown team. The Sixers, if they develop him, can really have a steal from last season’s draft. As of late, he’s been getting minutes and he’s shown that he’s more than capable of competing in the league. With the length the Suns have, Edward’s athleticism and length may have Nick Nurse giving him some more extended minutes against the Suns.
Prediction
Sixers 117 – Suns 109
