After a shaky start, the Sixers closed their five-game road trip in impressive fashion, winning three in a row and improving to 19-14 on the young season. Don’t look now, but the Sixers sit in fifth in the East.
After their win in New York Saturday, they’re only two games back in the loss column of the second-seeded Knicks.
On Monday, they return home and welcome the Nikola Jokic-less Denver Nuggets to town.
The secret to the Sixers’ success is pretty simple — they’re healthy. Joel Embiid and Paul George have been consistently taking the court. Embiid, who’s listed as probable, has been really effective over his last seven games, averaging 28.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.1 blocks in 33.0 minutes per game. Though George hasn’t played to that level, he’s finding his role on both ends of the floor and making a real impact while shooting 41.9% from deep over his last 11 games.
While those two have been rounding into form, the electric young duo of Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe continues to play like one of the best backcourt in the NBA.
Maxey has recently gotten a boost from his two-man game with Embiid to play an even more efficient brand of basketball. He’s averaging 33.0 points and 7.8 assists, shooting a preposterous 60.0% from the field and 48.5% from three over the last seven games. He’s also continued to be impactful on the defensive end, averaging 2.3 steals and 1.0 blocks during that stretch.
What else can you say about Edgecombe? He’s doing things a 20-year-old rookie surrounded by All-Stars shouldn’t be doing. Of all the standout traits we’ve seen from Edgecombe, his fearlessness has proven to be his most impressive. He buried the game-winner in Memphis, had one of the most incredible blocks you’ll ever see in a big spot in Dallas, and turned in another outstanding performance under the bright lights of MSG. It’s fair to wonder if the Sixers actually have a Big 4 — that’s how impactful Edgecombe has been.
The defensive end of the floor is where the Sixers have buttered their bread of late. They’re fourth in the NBA in defensive rating over their last 15 games. The offense is showing serious signs of life, boasting a 124.1 offensive rating over the last three games. The situation is delicate, but the Sixers are playing great basketball right now.
While Kelly Oubre Jr. and Trendon Watford remain out, it seems both guys are close to returning.
The Nuggets are hanging tough in the gauntlet that is the West, sitting at 23-12 and fourth in the conference. But the injury bug has crushed them of late. Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic recently suffered a knee hyperextension. Though he appears to have avoided any serious injury, he will be out for a while. Suffice to say, Denver is going to struggle to fill in the gaps while a player as important Jokic is sidelined.
While Jamal Murray has managed to stay healthy, the rest of the Nuggets’ starters have been dealing with various injuries. Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun returned to the lineup, but they’ve been limited this season to 14 and 12 games, respectively. Newcomer Cameron Johnson has also missed timed.
Denver is coming off a loss to the Brooklyn Nets Sunday night. While we won’t see their injury report until later this afternoon, it will likely be a challenge for the Nuggets in South Philly on Monday. The first game back after a long road trip is often difficult for the home team, so it’ll be important for the Sixers to get off to a fast start and try to take a weary Denver team out of things early.
It would also be nice for the beat writers in attendance who have to be there for such a late start!
Game Details
When: Monday, January 5, 8:30 p.m. ET
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: Peacock
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers
