Tag: Joel Embiid

Sixers vs. Knicks preview: Sixers look to solve their road issues

The Philadelphia 76ers head to Madison Square Garden to face the New York Knicks.

The Philadelphia 76ers hit the road after another home win on Thanksgiving Eve to improve to 8-0 at home where they have played much better than they have on the road. The team is 4-6 on the road and their defense is not as strong on the road. They give up 109.7 points on the road compared to 97.0 at home.

The opponent on Friday is the hapless New York Knicks who have a ton of issues of their own. They have, once again, not lived up to any of the expectations that they set for themselves, but RJ Barrett has been a solid performer for them in the early going.

It’s now time for the game preview with the complete guideline for the entire game:

How to watch Sixers vs. Knicks

  • Date: Friday, November 29
  • Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
  • Location: Madison Square Garden Manhattan, NY
  • TV: NBC Sports Philadelphia+

Injury Report

  • Sixers: OUT: Al Horford(rest), Kyle O’Quinn(left calf strain) DOUBTFUL: Josh Richardson(right hamstring) QUESTIONABLE: Shake Milton(upper respiratory)
  • Knicks: OUT: Reggie Bullock(neck), Elfrid Payton(right hamstring)

Storylines

Embiid with nothing to prove

Sixers superstar Joel Embiid had 33 points and 16 rebounds in the win on Wednesday after a scoreless effort against the Toronto Raptors on Monday. It was a big bounce-back effort for the Sixers big man and it was almost a “prove it” game following the unacceptable performance. However, if you ask him, he has nothing to prove to anybody.

I didn’t have to prove anything. I’ve matured a lot since I’ve got in the league. I understand the end goal is winning a championship so we’ve got to take it day-by-day. People are going to talk and I’ve learned not to pay attention to it. It doesn’t get to me. I just do it for myself, I just do it for the organization, and I just do it for my family. I don’t have anything to prove to anybody, I literally do not care about whatever was said after that performance so, like I said I don’t have anything to prove to anybody

Brown praises Thybulle

The Sixers received a big game from Embiid, but if it wasn’ for rookie Matisse Thybulle, who knows what would have happened? Thybulle entered late in the third quarter and he did a helluva job wreaking havoc on either end and he scored 15 points on 5-for-5 shooting and 3-for-3 from deep.

Brown had praise for his rookie’s development as he stated:

I think when he can get his feet set, and he has proper footwork we talk about ‘are you a front stepper or a side stepper?’ and he looked like his shoulders were over his waist, his wasit was over his feet, he had proper footwork into his shot, and it looked good. It really looked balanced. Then he was getting deflections and steals and, I’m sure he felt good about his defense that you’d think carry into the confidence in his shot, but I thought fundamentally, just judging it, he looked proper. He looked fundamentally correct and balanced and he made them. We needed every one of them.

Prediction

The Knicks are an Eastern Conference worst 4-14 and they come in scoring only 101.8 points per game, which is dead last in the league. Considering the Sixers are fourth in the league in defensive rating, this sets up as a way for them to get back on track on the road. The defense will hold the Knicks, who’s leading scorer is Marcus Morris at 18.6 points, and the offense should be able to do enough to win this game.

Pick: Sixers by double-digits

Sixers vs. Knicks season series

Game 1 November 20: 109-104 Sixers

Game 2 November 29:

Game 3 January 18:

Game 4 February 27:

[lawrence-related id=20210,20185,20161]

Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Friday’s Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks sports betting odds and lines, with NBA betting picks, tips and best bets.

The Philadelphia 76ers (12-6) visit the New York Knicks (4-14) Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden. We analyze 76ers-Knicks odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

C Joel Embiid rebounded from the worst game of his career with a 33-point, 16-rebound performance in a 97-91 home win vs. the Sacramento Kings Wednesday. Two nights earlier, he went scoreless in 32 minutes of a loss at the Toronto Raptors.

The Knicks not only lost their fourth in a row Wednesday, they had their biggest loss of the season, suffering a 28-point defeat at Toronto (126-98).

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76ers at Knicks: Key injuries

76ers: C Al Horford (rest) and C Kyle O’Quinn (calf) are out. SG Josh Richardson (hamstring) is doubtful and SG Shake Milton (upper-respiratory illness) is questionable.

Knicks: SG Reggie Bullock (back) and PG Elfrid Payton (hamstring) are out.

76ers at Knicks: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 5:10 a.m. ET.

Prediction

76ers 111, Knicks 103

Moneyline (ML)

There’s no doubt in my mind Philadelphia (-286) will win, but I can’t justify or take credit in advising someone to lay that kind of wood for a favorite. Every $2.86 wagered will profit only $1 if the 76ers win. Philly has won the last nine head-to-head meetings dating back to Dec. 2017. Keep in mind the Sixers are only 4-6 straight up (SU) away from home and own a 4-5-1 ATS road record. The Knicks (+230) are 3-6 SU at home and 4-5 ATS.

Line/Against the Spread (ATS)

The 76ers -7.5 (+100) is worth a small wager. Small, only because you’d like to think New York will show some heart after Wednesday’s blowout loss. The overall fact is this Knicks team is a mess.

New to sports betting? Bet $10 to profit $10 if the 76ers win by eight or more points.

Over/Under (O/U)

The OVER 204.5 (-129) is the STRONGEST PLAY. Every $1.29 wagered profits $1 if the teams combine for 205 or more points. Philly has played to four Unders in a row, while New York ranks last in the league by scoring 101.8 points per game. The Knicks have allowed 114.4 PPG over their last five outings. I expect the same to happen Friday night as the teams return from their short Thanksgiving breaks.

Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Johnny’s November plays: 11-8-1. Strongest plays: 6-3.

Follow @JohnnyParlay11 and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Sixers coach Brett Brown praises Joel Embiid, Matisse Thybulle after win

Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown has high praise Joel Embiid and Matisse Thybulle after a win.

The Philadelphia 76ers needed something to feel good about heading into Thanksgiving following a disastrous loss to the Toronto Raptors on Monday. They got their feel-good win on Wednesday when they knocked off the Sacramento Kings 97-91 to improve to 8-0 at home.

Superstar big man Joel Embiid led the way with 33 points and 16 rebounds following the scoreless night in Toronto and coach Brett Brown was happy with what he saw from his “crown jewel” as he bounced back in a big way.

Brown stated:

Did it surprise anybody? Going up against Marc Gasol, with due respect to Sacramento, is a difficult ask by any stretch and the way they defended him in Toronto along with Marc Gasol was effective on that night. Sacramento came at Joel and double teamed him and kind of everybody else as often as they could and I thought he did a pretty good job of playing out of the post and finding open shooters. The reality is we missed 2,002 open threes and he did a great job of passing. For him to come out the way that he did, it shouldn’t surprise anybody.

Embiid has proven a lot in his NBA career as he has already been selected an All-Star twice and he is considered one of the better players in the league regardless of position. The night in Toronto was definitely unacceptable, but it should come as no surprise that he came out the way he did on Wednesday.

The other star in the win was rookie Matisse Thybulle who scored a career-high 15 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting with four steals and he drilled three shots from deep. His play was a big game-changer in the third quarter.

Brown said on Thybulle:

I think when he can get his feet set, and he has proper footwork we talk about ‘are you a front stepper or a side stepper?’ and he looked like his shoulders were over his waist, his wasit was over his feet, he had proper footwork into his shot, and it looked good. It really looked balanced. Then he was getting deflections and steals and, I’m sure he felt good about his defense that you’d think carry into the confidence in his shot, but I thought fundamentally, just judging it, he looked proper. He looked fundamentally correct and balanced and he made them. We needed every one of them.

It challenged Brown to turn to Thybulle after the team lost Josh Richardson at halftime to a hamstring issue. His play on Wednesday might have just earned him a spot back in Brown’s rotation as the team continues on through the season. [lawrence-related id=20185,20173,20156]

Sixers’ Joel Embiid after win vs. Kings: ‘I don’t have anything to prove’

Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid says he has nothing to prove after a big performance against the Sacramento Kings.

After a nightmarish performance in Toronto on Monday night where he went scoreless for the first time in his NBA career, Joel Embiid came out aggressive on Wednesday. The big man started the game with a ferocious dunk on former Sixer Richaun Holmes and it jump-started him to score 33 points 10-for-19 shooting and grab 16 rebounds in a 97-91 win over the Sacramento Kings.

Some considered a sort of “prove it” game for Embiid. A game where he had to put the last one behind him and force his way back on track. However, if you ask Embiid, he has nothing to really prove.

Embiid said:

I didn’t have to prove anything. I’ve matured a lot since I’ve got in the league. I understand the end goal is winning a championship so we’ve got to take it day-by-day. People are going to talk and I’ve learned not to pay attention to it. It doesn’t get to me. I just do it for myself, I just do it for the organization, and I just do it for my family. I don’t have anything to prove to anybody, I literally do not care about whatever was said after that performance so, like I said I don’t have anything to prove to anybody.

To Embiid’s point, he has been an All-Star for two consecutive seasons and he is one of the best players in this league regardless of position. However, it did seem like there was more pep in his step to begin this one.

Embiid added:

It was just about my teammates, the organization, and making sure I do a better job to put us in a situation to win games. I didn’t do that against Toronto. It wasn’t about proving anything, it was about making the right play. Even in Toronto, I had zero points, but I felt like I did, in the circumstances, I did what I was supposed to do. Not play for myself, I always play for my teammates, I always play to win, whatever it takes. That’s what I’m going to do, tonight was a different story. I was just a little bit more free and I took advantage of it.

The Sixers are now 8-0 at home and will head into Thanksgiving sitting at 12-6 before heading to New York to face the Knicks on Friday. [lawrence-related id=20156,20148,20141]

Joel Embiid bounces back, leads Sixers past feisty Kings 97-91

Led by Joel Embiid and Matisse Thybulle, the Sixers held off a feisty Sacramento Kings team Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Center.

The Philadelphia 76ers improved to 8-0 at home on Wednesday night with a 97-91 win over the Sacramento Kings.

The Sixers jumped out to an 11-2 lead, and it looked like they would be in for an easy night. The Kings, despite playing the last game of a four-game road trip, had other ideas. Sacramento refused to go away time and again on Wednesday night.

After building a seven-point lead after one quarter, the Sixers put forth a disastrous second quarter that was marred by turnovers and uninspired play. As a result, the Kings made a run and only a buzzer-beating floater by Raul Neto preserved a halftime lead for the Sixers.

The Sixers regrouped at halftime and asserted themselves in the third, getting a huge spark from Matisse Thybulle, who we will talk about more later. The Sixers won the quarter by 11 and carried a 12-point advantage into the final quarter.

Still, the Kings wouldn’t go away. After the Sixers built the lead as high as 17, Sacramento made yet another push, getting within five points with under three minutes to go. Fortunately, the Sixers had the answer and were able to keep the Kings at bay until the final buzzer.

It’s safe to say Joel Embiid was tired of hearing about his zero-point, 0-for-11 game in Toronto on Monday. The big guy asserted himself early and often on Wednesday, scoring the first four points for the Sixers and finishing with 33 points, 16 rebounds, two blocks, and an assist. He shot 10-of-19 from the field and made sure to get to the free-throw line, where he had 14 attempts, connecting on 12. Embiid was aggressive and did a much better job passing out of double teams.

Tobias Harris didn’t have his jump shot working but chipped in 14 points, six rebounds, two assists, and two blocks.

Al Horford added 12 points, seven rebounds, five assists, a steal, and a block.

Ben Simmons had 10 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, and two steals.

Josh Richardson, who didn’t play in the second half due to hamstring tightness, had nine points, three assists, and a block.

Thybulle provided a huge boost off the bench, playing a huge role in the team’s third-quarter push. He finished with 15 points, four steals, three rebounds, two blocks, and an assist. The rookie shot 5-of-5 from the floor, 3-of-3 from beyond the arc, and 2-of-2 from the line. It was a sight to behold and an incredibly encouraging sign for the Sixers.

It was far from a pretty performance. The Sixers had 17 turnovers and shot just 19.2% from beyond the arc. But Joel Embiid responded to the worst game of his career on Monday in exactly the way you’d hope, and if Matisse Thybulle can replicate what we saw from him Wednesday night it would be huge going forward. It was nice to see the Sixers answer each push from the Kings and close the game out down the stretch.

The Sixers improved to 12-6 on the season and will get back at it Friday night against the Knicks in New York.

Marc Gasol, Pascal Siakam open up on how they frustrated Joel Embiid

Toronto Raptors big men Marc Gasol and Pascal Siakam react to the struggles of Joel Embiid.

Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid is one of the best players in the league regardless of his position, but on Monday night he hit an all-time low as he went scoreless while shooting 0-for-11 on the night in a loss to the Toronto Raptors. He also committed four turnovers and five fouls in an overall tough night for him.

His play contributed to the Sixers going scoreless in the final four minutes of the game missing their final eight shots and committing three turnovers as a team. That poor play allowed Toronto to go on a 13-2 run led by Pascal Siakam to end the game and win it for the Raptors who were missing a multitude of players.

Raptors big man Marc Gasol was the primary defender on Embiid and he forced him into nine of the 11 misses and three of his turnovers. Gasol spoke on how he frustrated Embiid:

They have a few plays that they run for him to allow him to separate from you. I didn’t help much off those plays because it’s set up to allow him to roll and that’s the game plan we had. The coaches did a great job preparing us for the game plan.

Gasol has always been a great defender in his career even winning a Defensive Player of the Year in 2013 while with the Memphis Grizzlies and he was a key reason for the Raptors knocking off the Sixers in the 2019 playoffs.

Siakam, another key reason, had praise for Gasol and how he handled himself against the Sixers superstar as he said:

Marc is a big body, he’s smart, he has being doing it for a while. He kind of understands how to guard, and positioning. Obviously, we’re helping but I think initially, his presence is a problem for a lot of people. When we are connected as a team on defence we can do a lot of things out there.

The Sixers will meet the Raptors again eventually and they could meet again in the playoffs. It will be up to them to take the experiences from this loss and continue to learn and grow together as a group.

Embiid especially will have to figure out how best to handle the Raptors as he stated:

They are a deep team. They’ve got guys that can do a lot of things on the basketball court. They’re well coached. They did
their job and they made sure to stick with the plan they had, especially taking me out of the game. That’s also on me to try and figure out and take advantage of it. Defensively they are everywhere. They are so long and they make sure to pack the paint, and tonight we didn’t make shots. When you’re not making shots and you play against a team like that, it’s really hard. We still came pretty close, but we have to get better, especially me.

Philadelphia will look to bounce back on Wednesday when they host the Sacramento Kings. [lawrence-related id=20103,20093,20085]

Brett Brown has a few takeaways after Sixers road loss to Raptors

Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown has some takeaways from the loss to the Toronto Raptors.

The Philadelphia 76ers took a 14th straight regular-season road loss to the Toronto Raptors on Monday night after Joel Embiid went scoreless for the first time in his career, but they were right there in the driver’s seat before allowing Toronto to go on a 13-2 run to end the game.

Philadelphia missed eight straight shots and committed three turnovers over the final four minutes of the game while Toronto used a combination of Pascal Siakam and Norman Powell in order to rally and win the game.

There are a few positives to take from the game, the Sixers had a chance to win this one on the road against the defending champions despite Embiid having the worst game of his career. There are just a few different issues that they have to clean up such as little turnovers like the Ben Simmons one late and the missed free throws by Embiid and Josh Richardson. These are the little things that can hurt a team in a five-point loss.

Coach Brett Brown acknowledged that stating:

If we are big boys, you’d say of course there has to be. You are going to walk out of here and find something that is going to make us better, and we will do it. At this moment, it stings. You’ll wake up in the morning; you’ll be wiser for it and learn things that we have to just respond to better. We had a stage where we missed four free throws, they came back and hit a three and it’s kind of like a seven point swing. You would like to have a few of those turnovers back, at the end of the game. That’s where I’m at.

The Sixers are a team that is still growing and learning how to play with each other. The big outlier is the play of Embiid who will never have that type of game again. He is too talented and too dominant to have that again. Nonetheless, it an inexcusable performance and now it’s an issue of taking the experience and not letting it happen again. It has to be a teaching moment for him and the team really.

Their next challenge is returning home on Wednesday to host the Sacramento Kings. [lawrence-related id=20074,20064,20057]

Drake taunted Joel Embiid after he had a scoreless night against the Raptors

The rivalry continues.

Rapper and Toronto Raptors ambassador Drake has a history of getting into it with NBA players, but he has some history with Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid.

Back in May, when the Raptors faced the Sixers in the playoffs, Drake had some words for Embiid as the star walked off the floor in a Game 5 loss to the Raps. Drake had also mocked the Embiid airplane celebration in that game.

Fast-forward to Monday night. The Raptors defeated the Sixers 101-96, and Embiid shockingly went scoreless on 0-of-11 shooting in 32 minutes while also amassing five fouls and committing four turnovers. Not good.

And here’s what Drake had to say about it toward Embiid. It would appear to be “MVP!”:

You also have to wonder if Drake flashing his Raptors championship ring on Instagram was a bit of a taunt meant for the Sixers:

View this post on Instagram

🥶

A post shared by champagnepapi (@champagnepapi) on

Either way, Drake has the upper hand here. Hopefully, we’ll see more of this in the postseason.

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Sixers coach Brett Brown on Joel Embiid: ‘It was a long night’

Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown acknowledged that it was a tough night for superstar Joel Embiid.

The Philadelphia 76ers continued their struggles in Toronto as they have now lost 14 consecutive road games to the Raptors in the regular season after a 101-96 loss on Monday night. The loss was mostly due to the struggles of Joel Embiid who went scoreless for the first time during his exceptional NBA career.

Embiid accepted responsibility for the loss after shooting 0-for-11 while committing four turnovers and five fouls in the game. Toronto’s Marc Gasol did a helluva job against Embiid and the double teams the Raptors sent at him were tough for him to figure out.

Coach Brett Brown acknowledged it was tough for him as he stated:

It’s all about him quarterbacking the gym. They double teamed him every single catch and I thought there were times he did a really good job of inviting that, and passing out of it. We shot a lot of threes because they doubled him and that’s what the game produced. I thought we did a pretty good job from time to time of getting off the post, and passing it around and trying to find his floor spots. You give Marc Gasol, a former defensive player of the year, credit, and Toronto credit. But it was a long night for Joel.

The Sixers had recently acknowledged that Embiid was passing much better out of the double teams, but that was certainly not the case on Monday as he had the rough night. The superstar big man acknowledged that he wasn’t fatigued or anything of the sort, he just needs to be better. He said:

I didn’t look fatigued and I was definitely not fatigued. Obviously, the defensive scheme … they were trying to make sure I didn’t touch the ball, and that forced me into a lot of tough shots. It didn’t matter … Marc didn’t help on the picks I was setting and on the post, obviously, they were doubling from the time the ball was in the air. When you’re not making shots, it’s tough, but I tried to take advantage of it by setting screens and holding it until my teammates got open.

Embiid and the Sixers will look to get back on track on Wednesday when they host the Sacramento Kings on Thanksgiving Eve. [lawrence-related id=20037,20031,19988]

Joel Embiid accepts responsibility after Sixers loss to Raptors

Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid accepts responsibility after a loss to the Toronto Raptors.

The Philadelphia 76ers winning streak was stopped at four after falling to the Toronto Raptors 101-96 after superstar big man Joel Embiid had himself a nightmarish game. For the first time in his basketball career, he went scoreless in a game shooting 0-for-11 and he had four turnovers along with five fouls in the loss.

It was a rare off night for the star who entered the game averaging 22.8 points and he has thrown the Sixers on his back plenty of times. On this night, the rest of the Sixers did their best to try and pick up Embiid, but they weren’t able to get it done.

Embiid accepted his responsibility in the loss as he told reporters:

It starts with me. I can’t have this type of production. I would’ve never thought I would be here talking about 0 points in an NBA game but it is what it is. Some nights you make shots, some nights you don’t.

The Sixers have now lost 14 straight games in Toronto in the regular season as they have not been able to figure out a way to win at Scotiabank Arena. Their win in Game 2 of the 2019 semifinals was their only win North of the Border over the past seven years. [lawrence-related id=20037,20031,20021]