Philadelphia at Brooklyn
Time: 6:30 PM CT (NBA LP)
Spread: PHI -6
Total: 219
Odds c/o 5dimes
The Philadelphia 76ers are currently seeded No. 6 in the East, and have won its past two games and six of its past 10. Philly trails No. 5 Washington by 1.5 games and leads No. 7 Miami by a half-game. The Sixers are 15-19 on the road and travel to face the Brooklyn Nets as 6-point favorites. Brooklyn is just 21-45, but is still better than both Atlanta and Orlando, and it has done so mostly without its two best players, D’Angelo Russell and Jeremy Lin. The Sixers are just tuning up, but still fighting for seeding in a tightly packed race between the 3 and 8 seeds.
BROOKLYN
The Brooklyn Nets have lost 10 of its past 12 overall, with the last being a 125-111 victory over the Charlotte Hornets. Allen Crabbe scored 29 points on 11 of 21 shooting and the Nets outscored the Hornets 60-52 in the second half.
The Nets have typically struggled even against the other poor teams in the league but still find itself ahead of both Orlando and Atlanta in the Eastern Conference Standings. Brooklyn’s pick will not be retained in the 2018 draft, so the team has no real impetus to actually tank, either.
Brooklyn has been without its starting backcourt of Jeremy Lin and D’Angelo Russell for most of the 2017-18 season. The team has relied on an assortment of developing role players like Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Allen Crabbe, Caris LeVert and veteran DeMarre Carroll to fill the gaps, and the team has actually overachieved in some senses. Carroll is having a good season with 13 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per night in 30 minutes a game, but Brooklyn is without its primary scorers, its duo of guards.
Russell averaged 15.8 points per game in his 29 appearances this season, and he has averaged 16.6 points and 7.8 assists over the Nets’ past five, including a 25 point, six assists, five rebound effort in a 123-129 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Russell is averaging 13.7 points and 6.3 assists over his past 10 games, and he is shooting 91.7 percent from the line over his past five. He can ideally lead this team to a far better offensive outcome.
76ers
The Sixers are tuning up for the first playoff matchup since “The Process” began some five years ago. Philly is currently seeded No. 6 in the East.
Moving up is imperative for Philly, in hopes to avoid a first-round clash with either Toronto or Boston. As tight as the Eastern Conference standings are, Philly can radically improve its draw by closing this season strong, and all indications are that it will do just that. If the playoffs began today, the Sixers would face the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The 76ers have knocked off the Washington Wizards, New Orleans Pelicans, and L.A. Clippers in its past three games, winning all of the games by 13 points or more with an average margin of victory of 14.6 points. Its most recent win was a 112-98 win over the Clippers, as the Sixers had a late run to rally past the new look Clippers.
Joel Embiid had 29 points and tied his career high with 16 rebounds. Ben Simmons had a double-double again with 14 points and 10 assists. Simmons is averaging 7.3 assists per game this season, and over his past 10 games, he has notched 7.7 assists along with 7.1 rebounds and 17.1 points. He has two double-doubles in his last five games and is in a neck-and-neck race with Utah’s Donovan Mitchell for the Rookie of the Year honor.
The Sixers are focused on bigger things than the award, especially after Embiid was (perhaps rightfully) snubbed for the award a year ago, mainly because he only played 32 games last season. Embiid has the makings of a true franchise player if he can remain healthy, and thus far this season he has. He has recently been cleared to play in back-to-back games, and the Sixers can also be thankful the postseason has no back-to-backs. Embiid is averaging 23.8 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.5 blocks/steals per game in 31 minutes a night in his 43 appearances. He will be an All-Star this year in just his second season.
