The Philadelphia 76ers split their early-week back-to-back, losing to the Charlotte Hornets before beating the Milwaukee Bucks at home. Now they’ll face another team dealing with its own issues, the Sacramento Kings, for the first time this season.
Man, oh man. Where do I even start breaking down this team? Fans who were around for the Process era are likely well familiar with the #Kangz, a franchise that simply can’t get out of its own way. Here we are 10 years later, and well, they’re still the #Kangz.
The Kings did find some recent success with the Beam Team, headlined by De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. Now Fox is gone. In his place is Zach LaVine, who joins DeMar DeRozan as the Kings have either accidentally or intentionally tried to reassemble the Chicago Bulls in a far more competitive conference. Sabonis is still there, but he has been slowly ramping his minutes back up as he returns from a lengthy injury.
The rest of the roster would best be described as fluid. Malik Monk is still around, though he has been banished from the rotation for stretches this season. Keegan Murray remains a bright spot in an otherwise bleak situation, although he is currently out with injury. Beyond that, the Kings brought in Dennis Schroder and Russell Westbrook this summer to add some veteran presence. There are a couple of minor silver linings as well, as rookies Max Raynaud and Dylan Cardwell have produced in limited minutes. Oh yeah, and our old friend Dario Saric is here too.
As you can probably tell from that list, things look pretty bleak. The Kings have played about how you would expect, sitting in the basement of the Western Conference at 12–36. There is some talent on this roster, but it lacks connective pieces and well-rounded contributors. Inconsistency defines this team. On most nights, one player will stuff the box score, but it usually happens in isolation rather than as part of a cohesive team effort.
That’s reflected in their offensive rating on the season, which ranks 29th in the league despite having some well-known scorers. Their defense is about what you’d expect from a team like this, sitting 28th in the league. It has really been a team that hasn’t hung its hat on either end of the floor or any particular skill.
Switching sides, the Sixers have had their fair share of ups and downs. On one hand, they’ve won real games against competitive teams. On the other, they’ve found themselves in dogfights more often than they probably should have and still sit below .500 at home. Their last game against the Bucks might be a turning point, though, as all three of their biggest names appear to be finding their legs and developing chemistry.
Both Joel Embiid and Paul George are coming off big performances, combining for over 60 points against Milwaukee. We’ve talked plenty about Embiid’s resurgence recently, but George turned in one of his best outings of the season. He knocked down nine three-pointers and stepped up as a perimeter scorer when the Sixers’ offense went cold. Tyrese Maxey also delivered a solid night with 22 points and nine assists. Rookie VJ Edgecombe added a well-rounded performance of his own, flirting with a triple-double while filling in the gaps as the Sixers’ stars did their thing.
All of those names have drawn plenty of attention, but one could argue none of them were the real story from the last game. With Quentin Grimes out, Jared McCain was called upon and looked like the player we saw last season. He poured in 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting and tied George for the team-high plus-minus at +13. McCain got shots up in the blowout against Charlotte, and it seems that may have helped get him back on track. The Sixers will need his shooting down the stretch of the regular season, and he has a chance to keep it going against a struggling defense. That will be a key area to watch in this matchup.
Key statuses to monitor for this matchup include Joel Embiid (probable), Paul George (probable) and Quentin Grimes (questionable). Johni Broome, Charles Bassey and MarJon Beauchamp are listed as doubtful due to G League assignments. For Sacramento, Russell Westbrook (right foot soreness) and Malik Monk (right ankle soreness) are questionable, while Keegan Murray is out.
The Sixers have two home games coming up, first against the Kings and then against the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday, that they should be able to win and start stacking some much-needed home victories. Now the question is whether they can keep building on this momentum.
Game Details
When: Thursday, January 29, 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers
