The Sixers are set to host the blazing-hot Golden State Warriors, who have won their past five games straight. Currently, the Stephen Curry-led Warriors are sitting as the seventh seed, winning seven of their last eight games since former Sixer Jimmy Butler, who they traded for ahead of the NBA trade deadline, made his debut with the team.
Butler, who has played in eight games for the Warriors, is questionable for the game, while Jonathan Kuminga is out.
On the other side of the coin, the Sixers have dropped nine in a row and are growing ever closer to being in a position to retain their to-six protected draft pick in this year’s draft. The big news out of Philadelphia, besides the Sixers’ signing of former first-round pick Jalen Hood-Schifino to a two-way deal, is that Joel Embiid has been declared out for the rest of the season.
The Sixers will also be without Eric Gordon, who recently underwent wrist surgery, Kyle Lowry, and Jared McCain.
Sixers game information
Who: Philadelphia 76ers (20-38) at Golden State Warriors (32-27)
When: 8:30 p.m. EST
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, ESPN
Latest on the Sixers
The Sixers are a team that entered this season with championship aspirations. Even when they were losing, they were still pushing the idea that if the Sixers could get healthy, they could make a serious run in the postseason. It appears that the team has finally concluded that this is no longer the case. Joel Embiid has finally been shut down for the season, and the Sixers may see their losing streak extend to double digits tonight.
At the rate the team has been losing, the Sixers may receive their draft pick this offseason despite it only being protected one through six. Should it land outside of that range, the Oklahoma City Thunder will receive the draft pick.
On the same day Embiid’s shutdown was announced, the Sixers also signed former Indiana guard Jalen Hood-Schifino to a two-way deal, waiving David Roddy in the process.
Latest on the Warriors
The Warriors are looking up in juxtaposition to the Sixers. Franchise cornerstone Stephen Curry has a new running mate in Golden State, Jimmy Butler, who provides the intense leadership and defense that he can only do.
Since joining the Warriors, Butler has jumpstarted their season and provided some much-needed relief for Steph. Butler has only appeared in eight games so far for the Warriors but is averaging a respectable 16.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.6 assists a night so far. Curry, who had 56 points in his last game, has been on fire since the Warriors acquired Butler from the Miami Heat. The four-time NBA Champion has averaged 30.6 points a night on 51.0% shooting from the field and 42.7% from three in games with Jimmy Butler.
Sixers X factor for tonight
The main X factor for the Sixers tonight will be the play of both Tyrese Maxey and Paul George. While both are on maximum contracts, the fit has ultimately not been ideal. The Sixers, in games where both Maxey and George play, have gone 13-20 on the season. Both players have struggled this season. Maxey has struggled with efficiency.
While a lot of this can be attributed to the injuries to his two co-stars, the max contract player has been shooting only 44.5% from the field, a career low, and 34.1% from beyond the arc, the lowest it has ever been since his rookie season. George has struggled with both volume and efficiency, averaging 16.4 points on 43.2% shooting from the field.
For the Sixers to make any noise this season, it will likely come down to these two players learning how to play together.
