The Philadelphia 76ers (11-9) are finishing up a three-game homestand, hosting the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night, hoping to build on their win against the Wizards earlier in the week. The Warriors just completed their own homestand, going 2-3 over their past five games.
Who: Golden State Warriors (11-11) at Philadelphia 76ers (11-9)
When: 7:00 p.m. EST
Where: XFinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass, NBC Sports Bay Area
The Sixers come into Thursday night's game about as banged up as they could be. In addition to Joel Embiid, listed as questionable for tonight's game, the team is still without Kelly Oubre Jr. and Trendon Watford. Additionally, Paul George is out for the contest, but Quentin Grimes has been upgraded to available, which is huge for the team.
Luckily, the Sixers still have Tyrese Maxey playing at an MVP level, VJ Edgecombe having a great start to his career, and Jared McCain finally looking like he's back in form after battling injuries last year and to start this season.
Maxey has been the unquestioned leader and star of the team through their first 20 games, averaging 32.5 points and 7.5 assists per game, which are both near the top of the league. He's had some off nights from long distance, but is still shooting 38.7% on his three-point attempts and 47% from the field on the year. After seeing his first game under 30 minutes against the Wizards, Maxey should be back closer to his league-leading 40.1 minutes in tonight's contest.
When it comes to this season and injuries, the Warriors are trying their hardest to compete with the Sixers. Jimmy Butler, Al Horford, Jonathan Kuminga, and Quentin Post are all listed as questionable, while Steph Curry has already been ruled out with a left quad contusion.
With the team not expecting Curry back until sometime next week, the team will be down to Butler, Kuminga, and Draymond Green as their primary guys, with players like Buddy Heild, Brandon Podziemski, and Moses Moody being looked at to pick up some of the help. It's not an ideal time for the Warriors.
The team just isn't good enough, and the injuries aren't helping them. Much like the Sixers, the Warriors do well against teams like the Pelicans, Jazz, and Hornets, while teams like the Rockets and Thunder take them down. With all of the success the team had over the past ten years, aging stars and not much depth are taking it's toll on the Warriors of 2025.
Regardless of whether or not Joel Embiid plays, the Sixers will have themselves a full arsenal of guards with Grimes, McCain, Maxey, and Edgecombe all going for the team tonight. That alone could put the Sixers easily over the top. The Sixers would be wise to rotate and lean on all four of them, especially with a frontcourt that doesn't look especially intimidating.
If the Sixers can continue to shoot well, especially from long distance, they should be able to get out of this homestand with a winning record. While the Warriors are still missing Curry, the last thing you want to do is get into a long-distance shootout with them. Besides, they'll have Seth Curry in the lineup. Despite their injuries, the Warriors are still a good defensive team, and that pressure usually hurts the Sixers. In the end, the guards, along with Drummond, Barlow, and Jabari Walker, should be enough to take down the Warriors and get ready for Friday's matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Sixers 125 - Warriors 113
