The Philadelphia 76ers (29-15) and Denver Nuggets (32-15) squared off in what was supposed to be the latest installment of Joel Embiid vs. Nikola Jokic. Unfortunately for all parties involved, Embiid was a late scratch. The Hospital Sixers still put on quite the show in a 111-105 loss.

Let’s break down the Hospital Sixers' latest adventure.

76ers player notes:

Patrick Beverley: 17 points, 4 rebounds, 11 assists, 2 blocks, 6-12 FG shooting

As the leader of the Hospital Sixers, PatBev is a legitimate force. He reached a season-high in assists with plenty of time left in the first half. The Nuggets showed him a variety of pick-and-roll coverages and he had an answer for each one. His ability to keep things steady needed as bad as ever and, despite a tail-off in his production in the second half, was crucial in this game.

Paul Reed: 30 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist, 14-21 FG shooting

Reed rose to the occasion, taking and making the shots that the defense gave him in the midrange on top of staying solid on defense. All that confidence to let his shot fly amid some occasionally brutal results paid off in this game, where he made most of his points off of jumpers and reached a new career-high.

The timing of his big-time performance could not have been better.

Nuggets player notes: 

Nikola Jokic: 26 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 8-16 FG shooting

Jokic once again missed out on the chance to get back at Embiid in his house after losing in Embiid's house. But a six-point performance in the first half was a pretty funny outcome. He was pretty solid defensively, utilizing his quick hands to disrupt the Sixers at the cup. The fact that Philly dominated the paint on offense was not entirely his fault but also was not a great look.

The Nuggets superstar applied himself much more in the second half, coming up short often at the foul line but asserting his dominance in the paint over the myriad of smaller opponents.

Game recap:

1st half

Another year, another Embiid-less game in Denver. The big fella was ruled out just minutes before the scheduled game time due to left knee soreness and concerns from the training staff over his warm-ups, per Woj. His last game in Denver came in 2019. The 76ers returned to Colorado (where they held their training camp) in the midst of a brutal injury spell and played perhaps their most Hospital Sixers game of the season with Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, De'Anthony Melton, Robert Covington and Mo Bamba also sidelined.

Patrick Beverley, Kelly Oubre Jr, Marcus Morris Sr., Nicolas Batum and Paul Reed had the honor of going against a fully healthy Nuggets starting five. Morris guarded Jokic with Reed the roamer off of Aaron Gordon while Nico Batum took Murray. Denver opened the game on a 13-4 run fueled by three straight triples from Murray.

The Sixers went a PatBev-Bball Paul pick-and-roll and let Morris go to his face-up game in the mid-range in the hopes of scoring. They subbed K.J. Martin, Furkan Korkmaz and Danuel House Jr. in early as a way to keep everyone's legs as fresh as possible. Philly put in the work on defense and generated easy chances to score at the rim, making up for its massive deficiency in the halfcourt. Reed drained jumpers from all over the mid-range, so who really needs Embiid?

The 76ers tied things up and made their first triple of the game early in the second quarter. Beverley, after serving as a big-time passer in the first, got deeper into the point column with seven quick points. Jaden Springer was inserted into the game for the first time and was used as Jamal Murray's defender, including in a box-and-one. Morris extended his heater to the next quarter, making six of his first seven shots.

The gameplan was obviously to minimize Jokic's ability to score in the paint but the Sixers still switched everything, allowing Jokic bigger advantages with his size. Still, they played with spirit and energy, making quick switches and rotations on defense and making the most of their possessions on offense. They took the lead briefly, a legitimately impressive feat.

After going back and forth the rest of the half, the 76ers trailed 64-62. They fell well behind Denver in three-point shots and free throws but shot 74.2 percent inside the arc, including 81 percent in the paint.

2nd half

The 76ers let their defensive sharpness slip a bit, allowing some open shots for the Nuggets at the start of the half. Jokic started going to work more in the paint, swooping to the hoop against smaller defenders. He showed patience before attacking a smooth move to get right into a scoring motion as the Nuggets started to pull away. Oubre skying for points at the rim stabilized the Sixers.

Nick Nurse went small in a lineup against Jokic. He didn’t have much of a choice with only one available center and fortunately, the 76ers bounced back with a mini-run. Martin took the matchup and the Sixers didn’t allow off-ball switches. He held his own until Reed came back in, which included a catch-and-shoot three.

Furkan Korkmaz hoisted a triple at the end of the shot clock to tie the game again before Jokic took it back in the midst of his wake-up performance in the quarter. The 76ers, though, continued to exert complete control over the paint on offense. They got downhill and contested Denver's defensive rebounds each time. A hectic sequence off a miss where House tapped a loose ball to Reed allowed Philly to take a two-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

As the Beverley-Reed pick-and-roll continued at the start of the final frame, Nurse had House guard Murray. Reed flushed a putback dunk to tie his career-high in points and both sides exchanged misses. The thin air in the mountains was very much catching up to everyone but the game remained close. The 76ers' chance to steal this game was right in front of them.

Jokic missed a pair of free throws and then missed another but made up for it by following his own miss for a putback. The Nuggets started pulling away again as they made their shots and the Sixers missed theirs. They had come so close but the long journey they took to get there had clearly worn them down. The tank hadn’t been fully tapped yet, though.

A Beverley turnaround hook shot and another triple from Reed made it a three-point game. Michael Porter Jr. swished a corner three but Oubre drew a foul (on the floor) and hit his two free throws. Morris used Philly’s chance to make it a one-point game by pulling a three off the catch early in the shot clock…and missed.

The Nuggets had made it a six-point game in the waning moments, forcing the 76ers into must-foul territory. Philly was unable to finish off the remarkably impressive job it started, taking another defeat.

Random tidbits:

  • The ducking Jokic allegations against Embiid, regardless of how much the team influenced the decision to sit out, are not ever going away. The frustrations could have been avoided (at least in part) by having Embiid on the injury report coming into the game, which would have made sense after he tweaked his knee in Thursday's game. He can only miss six more games and retain his eligibility for awards.
  • The “Troel” nickname shall also live on for Embiid embracing the Denver crowd from the bench.

The 76ers' road trip continues Monday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.