The Philadelphia 76ers took their home floor Thursday night for a nationally televised matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers. LeBron James was a late scratch, leaving LA without a key piece of their big three.
While Anthony Davis did what he could to lead the charge, it was not enough to keep up with Joel Embiid and company. Thanks to a team effort, the Sixers came away with a 105-87 victory. Here are some observations from the win.
1) Three-point shooting
Outside shooting has been an up-and-down element to the Sixers' offense, but it was on full display against the Lakers. They came out of the gates scorching hot from deep, allowing them to create early separation. As a group, the Sixers shot 37.1% from deep, hitting 13 of their 35 attempts.
Even without their best three-point shooter in Seth Curry, the Sixers managed to pose a threat from beyond the arc. Those who led this barrage of threes included Tobias Harris (3-5), Georges Niang (4-6), and Danny Green (3-7).
When the Sixers get going from deep, they become a much tougher team to defend. The Lakers constantly double-teamed Embiid, and the result was an array of wide-open looks. Getting some key contributors back is already starting to pay dividends.
2) Team win
Over the past month, Embiid has put the Sixers on his shoulders with a plethora of dominant performances. While the All-Star center had another impressive showing Tuesday, he got a lot of help from the supporting cast as well.
Up and down the roster, guys came in played their roles to the fullest. Whether it was sharpshooters like Green and Niang hitting threes or Matisse Thybulle with his elite-level defense, everyone helped contribute to the victory.
Embiid is playing at an MVP level right now, but he is only one man. For the Sixers to keep piling wins, production needs to come from everywhere. Not having to rely so heavily on Embiid on a nightly basis should yield positive long-term effects as the regular season rolls along.
3) Battle of the bigs
With LeBron out of the lineup, all eyes were on the star-studded matchup in the frontcourt. In just his second game back from injury, Anthony Davis was tasked with matching up against Embiid.
The pair of All-Star big men did not disappoint. Both went off for huge nights and regularly went at each other on both ends. Davis tallied 31 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocks, while Embiid finished with 26 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.
Arguably the biggest thing that stood out in this game within the game was Davis' defense on Embiid. Few players have managed to slow Embiid over the last month, but Davis certainly made life hard for him at times.
In today's day and age, the center position is often an afterthought. That was not the case Tuesday as we were treated to a good old-fashioned battle of bigs in primetime.
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