The Philadelphia 76ers have not quite had the road success that they have had while at home, but Saturday presents another opportunity to get it right. After a Friday home win over the Chicago Bulls which improved their home record to 20-2, they will now take the trip up north to Gotham to take on the New York Knicks.
The Knicks have been a hapless bunch all season taking blowout losses left and right, but they have played a little better at home. Since Mike Miller took over as the interim coach in place of the fired David Fizdale, the Knicks have a few nice home wins including one over the Miami Heat recently so Saturday won’t be a cakewalk for the Sixers.
With that said, it’s now time for the guide to this one:
How to watch Sixers vs. Knicks
- Date: Saturday, January 18
- Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
- Location: Madison Square Garden Manhattan, NY
- TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Injury Report
- Sixers: NOT YET SUBMITTED
- Knicks: OUT: RJ Barrett(right ankle sprain), Dennis Smith Jr.(left oblique strain) PROBABLE: Reggie Bullock(sore neck)
Storylines
Korkmaz gave Redick signs
In a season where the Sixers have had issues spacing the floor as they continue to work out their awkward roster, they found a glimmer of hope in Furkan Korkmaz. The third-year man from Turkey drilled six threes on Friday and this comes after a big game on Wednesday where he made three from deep. Friday’s game gave coach Brett Brown some flashbacks to the JJ Redick days.
“For us to see him come in and do JJ like stuff and have that type of a bomber, that was different,” said Brown. “We put him in a bunch of stuff. We ran five plays in a row going to him like I had flashbacks of JJ. Like we jumped into JJ’s package.”
The Sixers will need more of that if they are to have the success they envision with their group.
Simmons playing all-league defense
In the win on Friday, Ben Simmons led the charge to start the third quarter and he put the clamps on Zach LaVine late in the second half. He has become a legitimate game-changer on that end of the floor and it has Brown screaming that he should be in the running for an all-league defensive team spot.
“How can we not recognize Ben Simmons’ defense?” asked Brown postgame. “After the first time out in the first period, are you serious? He was just the adult in the room defensively, he’s a physical presence by a lot when you watch him play defense. I thought he changed the game. How can he not be an all-league defensive player?”
Prediction
This has the chance to be the “get right” game for the Sixers on the road. As dominant as they have been at home, they are only 7-14 on the road and this gives them an opportunity to right the ship a bit. The Knicks, despite their recent wins, are just not a good team and even without Joel Embiid, should dominate and win this game. This will give Simmons and Al Horford an opportunity to continue their success. Philadelphia should win this game.
Pick: Sixers by double-digits
Sixers vs. Knicks season series
Game 1 November 20: 109-104 Sixers
Game 2 November 29: 101-95 Sixers
Game 3 January 18:
Game 4 February 27:
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