PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers are set to match up on Monday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
Both teams feature major star talent: Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey for Philadelphia and LeBron James and Anthony Davis for Los Angeles. Both star duos are a handful for opponents.
Sixers big man Paul Reed, who figures to get a look at Davis when he gets on the floor to back up Joel Embiid, discussed the keys to defending Davis on the floor. He went right to Davis’ penchant for selling calls at times on the floor.
“He’s a big flopper, so make sure I don’t get in foul trouble early by any — I can’t be too aggressive with him,” said Reed at shootaround on Monday. “He’s gonna be flailing, so I gotta make sure I stay out of foul trouble.”
Davis attempts 5.9 free throws per game and averages 22.1 points per game. The 5.9 attempts per game is tied for 24th in the league. Reed commits 2.0 fouls per game in his 13.4 minutes, and he does get an unfair whistle at times from the officials. Davis is a star who can sell a call. Combined with the unfair whistle Reed receives at times, the young Sixer might get into foul trouble.
Davis is a top talent while Reed is a very good defender off the bench. He should be able to hold his own on Monday.
It will be an interesting matchup when the two big men match up at 7 p.m. EST at the Wells Fargo Center.
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