The Philadelphia 76ers continue to be the league’s most maddening team. They continue to be dominant at home as they own the league’s best home record at 22-2, but they also own a ghastly 9-18 road record that has them sitting in the 6 seed in the East. They conclude a four-game road trip on Thursday with a visit to the team with the best record in the league.
The Milwaukee Bucks have looked invincible as they own a 43-7 record and sit at the top of the league. League MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to tear up the league and he has been getting help from the likes of Khris Middleton, Eric Bledsoe, and others as the Bucks own the league’s third-best offense.
With that said, it’s time for the game guide to this clash of the titans in the East:
- Date: Thursday, February 6
- Time: 8:00 p.m. EST
- Location: Fiserv Forum Milwaukee, WI
- TV: TNT
Injury Report
- Sixers: OUT: Josh Richardson (left hamstring strain)
- Bucks: PROBABLE: Thanasis Antetokounmpo (right shoulder contusion)
Storylines
Sixers need identity
The Sixers are still a team that is trying to figure out who they are 51 games into the season. Are they going to try and be fast and have Ben Simmons run things? Are they going to slow things down and play it through Joel Embiid? Or try and fire up a bunch of 3-pointers in Tobias Harris? Either way, they don’t have one right now and Embiid knows it.
“No, we don’t,” said Embiid. “Spacing is an issue. Sometimes we play fast, sometimes we play slow, but at the end of the day, when you think about it and as we try to get ready for the playoffs also, the game slows down. It becomes a half-court game and that’s where we struggle the most so hopefully we do a better job in the next three games before All-Star.”
Sixers feeling the pressure
Philadelphia has four games left before the All-Star break, including Thursday’s game, and they have to get themselves momentum heading into the break. The team is sitting at the 6 seed in the East and they have lost three in a row, all on the road, and have doubts and fingers pointed at them from the outside. Al Horford understands that the team is up against it and they have to find a way to respond.
“Our backs are against the wall right now,” said Al Horford. “That last game didn’t go as well as we wanted it to, especially in the second half. We have to respond and I believe that our team has responded every time this year when we’ve hit some adversity so tomorrow night is not going to be any different. We have to respond.”
Prediction
This one has a loss written all over it. Losers of three straight games and facing, arguably, the best team in the NBA, and still down an important piece in Josh Richardson, it does not bode well for the Sixers. To their credit, this would be the type of game where they rise to the occasion and shock people with a win, but that was also thought to be the case in the previous two games of the trip. It’s hard to see Philadelphia coming away with a win in this one.
Pick: Bucks by double-digits
Sixers vs. Bucks season series
Game 1 December 25: 121-109 Sixers
Game 2 February 6:
Game 3 February 22:
Game 4 April 7:
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