The Sixers are back at home Friday night for a matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves as they begin a difficult four-game stretch to wind down the season. After climbing into the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference standings, the Sixers are looking to maintain that position with a win over the Wolves, who are coming into town a bit tired after losing 113-108 to the Pistons.
Who: Minnesota Timberwolves (46-30) at Philadelphia 76ers (42-34)
When: 7:00 p.m. EST
Where: XFinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA.
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass
Joel Embiid was upgraded to probable for tonight's game as he continues to deal with the same illness that has bothered him since the Sixers' loss to the Heat and kept him out of the win over the Wizards. If Embiid can't go or is limited, Adem Bona and Andre Drummond will get plenty of minutes against a formidable Wolves defense.
The Sixers could use more of the scoring they saw against the Wizards, as Paul George dropped 39 points in just 30 minutes, Tyrese Maxey added 28, VJ Edgecombe finished with 23, and Kelly Oubre Jr. and Quentin Grimes each added 12 off the bench. That was against the Wizards, though, and these Timberwolves are a different breed of team.
Jaden McDaniels is listed as out, and Anthony Edwards remains questionable after missing Thursday's game against the Pistons, leaving the Wolves with huge holes to fill in the lineup. Despite those potential missing pieces, they still have Julius Randle averaging 21.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per night, along with Naz Reid, Donte DiVincenzo, Rudy Gobert, Bones Hyland, and Mike Conley. They have talented depth, veteran experience, and a top defense to go up against anyone in the league.
The Wolves are a well-rounded unit that ranks fifth in the league in points allowed per game at 112.9, holds the fifth-best defensive efficiency rating of 1.091, and allows opponents to shoot just 45.8% from the field per game, which also ranks fifth. They're less impressive defensively against the three-point shot, where the 35.6% rate they allow is right with the Sixers in the middle of the pack. Their offense ranks seventh in the league, and the team ranks third in three-point shooting, hitting 36.9% per game. They're a tough matchup, on both sides of the ball, but will be short-handed if McDaniels (out) and Edwards (questionable) are both missing.
Whether Embiid plays or not, the trio of George, Edgecombe, and Maxey will need to shoot often and efficiently as they look to disrupt the Wolves. Highlights galore for the evening as Edgecombe seems to show up big when the lights are brightest, and Maxey is looking to reestablish what he started early in the season.
While the team is leaning towards tightening their rotation as the playoffs approach, head coach Nick Nurse has to look to the bench a bit more, with players like Cam Payne and Justin Edwards, who can both contribute, needing more minutes, while also getting quality minutes for Grimes and Oubre Jr. Resting starters, while in the hunt for a better playoff position, is not really an option, but depending on the style and score, Nurse has to be aware of this, and players who sit a lot won't do him any good on the floor when he has some of his stars break down.
If the Sixers are able to shoot from long distance, as they did against Washington, they could steal a win from a very good but short-handed Wolves team and keep themselves out of the play-in tournament. If they're on one of their 22-30% nights, it'll be a long game with a Wolves team that can and will shoot a lot of threes.
Wolves 122 - Sixers 111
