The Philadelphia 76ers are on to game four of their Western Conference road trip as they visit the Phoenix Suns on Saturday night. The Sixers are coming off a tough loss to the Lakers, 119-115, on Thursday night, while the Suns dropped a tough game to the Warriors, 101-97, on the same night.
Who: Philadelphia 76ers (29-22) at Phoenix Suns (31-21)
When: 9:00 p.m. EST
Where: Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix, Az.
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass
After enjoying a five-game winning streak, the Sixers ran into the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday, ending their recent run of success. Not that the Lakers were much better than them, but the Sixers defeated themselves more than anything by shooting 20.8% on their three-point attempts. They made just five for the whole game, with Tyrese Maxey going 1-9 from deep, as poor shooting and just 14 points from their bench were most responsible for the loss.
Tonight, the team will look for a little bit of revenge against the Suns, whom they lost to by six points back on Jan. 20. While Joel Embiid missed that game, the star center is now listed as questionable for tonight's game. Embiid has been healthier than ever, especially over the last month, and he's played well, so the team will be monitoring their biggest star, which could leave them short-handed again versus the Suns.
If the Sixers are going to win, they're going to need more from Tyrese Maxey, who had a rough shooting night against the Lakers and has only shot 32% on his three-point attempts over his last ten games. Maxey and rookie VJ Edgecombe are the two most important players to the Sixers' attack and may be hitting a wall after having played so many minutes this season. Head Coach Nick Nurse has to get a handle on the rotation, but with Jared McCain being shipped off to OKC on Thursday, the Sixers are suddenly very light at the guard position.
The Suns are coming off a tough loss to the Warriors at home on Thursday night and have been without leading scorer Devin Booker since Jan. 23. Despite missing Booker and Jalen Green for a while, the team has still won four of its last seven games, including victories over the Cavaliers and Pistons. Booker and Green are both still listed as questionable for tonight's game, making it a tough task for the remaining group.
In addition to Booker and Green, the team will definitely be without their third leading scorer, Grayson Allen, who was forced to leave the Warriors game after injuring his knee. This leaves the team in the hands of Dillon Brooks to lead the way, along with Collin Gillespie, Mark Williams, and Royce O'Neale.
The Suns, despite missing some valuable pieces, have a very good defense, currently ranked eighth in the league and ninth in three-point shooting. While some of the names are bigger, Gillespie and O'Neale are leading the way from downtown. Gillespie is currently tied with Jamal Murray at 43.2% for the league lead in three-point shooting, while O'Neale is hitting at 40.2%, which is closing in on his career high from just last season. Despite the "lack of star power," the Suns have been playing very good basketball on both ends of the floor and will be a tough matchup for the Sixers.
With the Suns and Sixers, you'll have plenty of long-range shooting, but the Sixers need to hope that they can start connecting on their shots. With Gillespie and O'Neale on the court, the Sixers will have some time trying to keep pace with the two sharpshooters on the Suns. The Sixers could use a sharpshooter of their own, but it appears that is not meant to be.
Look for the Sixers to try to outpace the Suns, especially in stretches with Bona on the court. If they can get out on the open floor and use their speed to penetrate the lane and take better shots, that would be more beneficial than the constant kick-outs to players who aren't hitting threes.
The Sixers will need Maxey and Edgecombe to get to the free-throw line, as well as a huge effort from Kelly Oubre Jr. and Dominick Barlow. If they get a quality team effort and forget about getting into a long-range shootout, the Sixers have a chance to exact their revenge on the Suns.
Suns 117 - Sixers 98
