The Philadelphia 76ers are on a rampage right now, as they are playing like a team that’s going to go deep in the playoffs. Up next for them is a rematch against the LA Clippers, who won in the first matchup of these two title contenders. Check out our preview of this game below.
The Clippers didn’t have their two superstars, but they still managed to get a 100-98 win on the road over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday. This extended the Clippers’ win streak to seven games and helped sustain the team’s moment heading into a marquee matchup against the Sixers. George can play this Friday, as he only missed the Pistons game to rest. As for Leonard, he’s currently nursing a sore right foot, which is minor enough for him to be with the Clippers in this road trip. Leonard had 28 points, while George chipped in 24 in the Clippers’ 122-112 home win over Philadelphia last month. The Clippers are fourth in the NBA with 115.3 points per game and seventh with just 108.4 points allowed per contest.
The Clippers are 6-3-1 against the spread in their last 10 games.
Joel Embiid could not be stopped in the Sixers’ 123-117 home win over the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday. Embiid scored 29 points on 13-29 shooting with a 10-11 line from the charity stripe to go with 13 rebounds in total domination of the Nets. Embiid was not around in last month’s game against the Clippers. Now that he’s available, the Sixers could continue tossing him the ball and just let the Cameroonian do whatever he wants with it. The Clippers are a bit thin inside, with Serge Ibaka still out of, so there’s no one who can really stop Embiid from the havoc he is very much capable of doing this coming Friday. Embiid is putting up MVP numbers this season, averaging 29.8 points on 51.6 percent shooting from the field, 11.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game. As a team, the Sixers are scoring 113.7 points per contest.
The Sixers are 2-1 against the spread in their last three games overall.
