Sixers (12-11) at Rockets (6-17) from the Toyota Center
Tonight, the 76ers conclude their three-game trip with a visit to Houston and get some help back in the form of their All-Star point guard. After having the weekend off, the 12-11 Sixers conclude their seven-day trek through three cities, looking to pick up a victory on their final stop, this time in Texas to take on the 6-17 Houston Rockets before returning home to begin a seven-game homestand. Philadelphia took both games last season, extending their series win streak over the Rockets to five games.
On Friday in Memphis, Philadelphia fell to the Grizzlies, 117-109. Joel Embiid led all scorers with 35 points, adding game-highs in assists with eight and blocked shots with three, including a team-high 11 rebounds tying him with teammate Tobias Harris. Harris finished second on the team in scoring with 21 on 7 of 14 shooting, drilling a season-high five threes on six tries. This all came after the veteran forward had to leave Wednesday’s game versus Cleveland early while dealing with an illness. A nice bounce-back individual performance. Shake Milton contributed 17 with five assists while backcourt mate De’Anthony Melton tallied 13, six boards, and four assists against his former club.
Speaking of facing former clubs, James Harden starred for eight seasons and eight games before being traded at the start of the 2020-21 campaign. Now, he stars for Philadelphia and returns tonight to the lineup for the 76ers. The former MVP and 10-time All-Star last played on November 2nd in a 121-11 loss to the Washington Wizards. In that game, he injured his right foot which would have him miss the next month, a total of 14 games in between. An 8-6 record in his absence. In the nine games that Harden has played, he carried averages of 22 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists – featuring one of his more complete outings, a 23-point, 17 assists showing in a win over the Wizards on the road in the first game of their home and home series. Getting the veteran point guard back in the lineup will be a big help as the team slowly gets their full complement of players in the lineup following injuries that caused them to miss time. It also allows head coach Doc Rivers to get a better look at his players in a more normal rotation as they look to improve their standing in the Eastern Conference. Third-year guard Tyrese Maxey is now the only one still down for a few more weeks.
The young Rockets are 3-5 at home and feature second-year guard Jalen Green who leads the team in scoring with 21 a night. Rookie forward and number three overall pick from Auburn, Jalen Smith, has played in 22 of the team’s 23 games, starting them all and learning his way through the NBA game as he averages 11.6 points and hits the glass for 6.9 rebounds. Four more players post double-figure scoring including veteran shooting guard Eric Gordon with 12 per outing, knocking down 35 percent of his attempts from beyond. A nice group of young talent that continues to grow under head coach Stepen Silas.
Houston last played on Friday, defeating the West-leading Phoenix Suns, 122-121. After trailing by as much as 16 and 10 heading into the fourth quarter, the Rockets forced their way back making it after a 9-0 run to tie the game. As part of their comeback, Green scored 20 of his team-high 30 in the third. In the fourth, talented wing Kevin Porter Jr and reserve big man Bruno Fernando scored 10 points each to help secure the stunning win over the Suns. As a team, they shot 68 percent in the final frame, scoring 36 points – going 13 for 19 from the field and a perfect 4 for 4 from beyond. Showing that while they are rebuilding… there’s a lot of fight in this group.
