The Philadelphia 76ers (10-9) are in the middle of a three-game homestand, hosting the Washington Wizards (3-16) after a 142-134 overtime loss at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday afternoon. The Wizards are heading to Philly after beating the Milwaukee Bucks, 129-126, in Washington on Monday night.
Who: Washington Wizards (3-16) at Philadelphia 76ers (10-9)
When: 7 p.m. EST
Where: XFinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass
The Sixers are looking to get back to winning after a disheartening loss to the Hawks on Sunday, when the team shot just 22.7% from three-point land, which cost them the game. Tyrese Maxey led the team with 44 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists, but shot just 2-13 on his three-point attempts in 52 minutes on the floor. Maxey is leading the league in minutes per game and is third in scoring at 32.2 points per game, seventh in assists at 7.6 per game. To say that Maxey has taken over as the Sixers' biggest star would be an understatement.
With Maxey as the team's leader, it's up to the complementary players to do their job, and that didn't happen against the Hawks. Quentin Grimes did his part as the lone exception with 28 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 50% on his threes, but the rest of the team just couldn't come through, especially from long distance. Joel Embiid, Paul George, VJ Edgecombe, Jared McCain, and Dominick Barlow combined to shoot just 4-20 from long range, and that, ultimately, was the downfall against the Hawks.
With Embiid out for the Wizards game, the Sixers are going to need more from players like Edgecombe and McCain, while George and Barlow will need to shoulder the load in the front court. If they're going to win, even against the bottom-of-the-league Wizards, the whole team will need a reasonable effort.
A perpetually bad team, the Wizards have again assumed their place at the bottom of the standings and are tied with the New Orleans Pelicans for the worst record in the league after beating the Bucks, 129-126, on Monday night.
With Alex Sarr and Tre Johnson, two of the Wizards' leading scorers, out for the game against the Sixers, the team will have to rely on CJ McCullum, Kyshawn George, Khris Middleton and Marvin Bagley III to lift the weight as the team hopes to build on their win against the Bucks.
Sarr is leading the team in scoring and rebounding on the season with 19.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, having taken a big leap in just his second season. Sarr has improved almost every statistical category this season, with the exception of his free-throw shooting. He'll be a huge hole to fill against a tough Sixers team.
With the Wizards being such a poor team and having two of their better players out for the game, the Sixers should be able to capitalize on that with their smaller, faster lineup, as Joel Embiid will be missing the game as well. Getting VJ Edgecombe back into the flow of things, while continuing to bring along Jared McCain, should be a priority against the Wizards so they're better prepared for some tougher games over the next two weeks.
Head Coach Nick Nurse, despite being limited with his roster options, absolutely must do a better job of reducing Maxey's minutes. Last season, Maxey was at the top of the league in minutes when he got hurt in December, and if history serves correctly, then he's headed that way this year. The Sixers have four legitimately talented guards that they can play, and even with a three-guard lineup, Nurse should be able to get Maxey some extended breaks.
The Sixers shouldn't have too much of a problem with the Wizards, but they are coming off a huge win over the Bucks, and despite it being their second game in two nights, they could be looking to knock off another good team. Rotations, movement, spacing and pace will all be keys tonight as the Sixers look to get back in the win column.
Sixers 121 - Wizards 106
