The Philadelphia 76ers' penultimate match of the NBA pre-season will see them take on the Brooklyn Nets at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday morning.
Both these sides notched up pre-season victories on Monday, with Philadelphia beating the Hawks on the road while the Nets overcame the Wizards at home.
Match preview
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The Philadelphia 76ers finished off their three-game road trip with a 104-89 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday to improve their record to 2-2, including the victory over the New Zealand Breakers on October 7.
Tyrese Maxey contributed 14 points and seven assists, delivering a solid performance on offence against the Hawks, while Paul George added eight points and two rebounds in just 12 first-half minutes.
Philadelphia had a slow start offensively, but they bounced back in the second quarter, displaying better ball movement, which was a much-needed improvement after struggling mightily in the last two games against the Timberwolves and the Celtics.
A large part of the Sixers' underwhelming preseason performances is attributable to the absence of Joel Embiid and the balance he typically provides the team at both ends of the court.
Unfortunately for the 76ers, they are now expected to end the preseason, and possibly start the regular season without nine-time All-Star forward George as well, who sustained a knee injury against the Hawks that forced him off before half time.
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Meanwhile, the Brooklyn Nets have been putting in hard yards in pre-season and the rewards for their hard work are starting to show as they put in a dominant display to rout the visiting Wizards in their first home game on Monday.
After showing a strong transition game in last week's preseason loss to the Clippers but falling short in the battle of the benches, the Nets turned things around and dominated in some style this time.
Cam Thomas led all scorers with 17 points on 7-for-13 shooting and five rebounds, while Shake Milton added 16 points and Jalen Wilson contributed 14, fueling the Nets' 74-45 advantage in bench points.
The Nets also held Washington to just 40% shooting and 7-of-39 from three-point range, while forcing 19 turnovers that led to 35 points in addition to dominating in fast-break points with a 26-7 advantage.
Indeed, it is worth pointing out that it is still the preseason and the Wizards are certainly not the toughest opponent around, but what stood out about the Nets was their sharp play and ball movement, which saw the side record 27 assists with only seven turnovers.
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Team News
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The 76ers will remain without the services of their big man Joel Embiid, who the franchise confirmed last week will remain sidelined for the rest of the preseason as part of his left knee management.
As mentioned, Paul George was forced off the court in the first half on Monday and did not return for the rest of the match. There has been no news as to the extent of his injury just yet, though he is also likely to sit out this match.
The Nets, on the other hand, are also missing a few players through injury at present, including backup centre Day'Ron Sharpe and rotation forward Trendon Watford, both of whom are out for several weeks due to left hamstring strains.
Additionally, Nic Claxton and Bojan Bogdanovic also missed the victory over the Wizards and the pair are flagged as questionable for this match, which will likely lead to Noah Clowney starting at centre.
Philadelphia 76ers possible starting five:
Oubre Jr, Martin Jr, Drummond, Maxey, Gordon
Brooklyn Nets possible starting five:
Johnson, Simmons, Clowney, Schroder, Thomas
We say: Philadelphia 76ers to win by 5+ points
While the Nets picked up a big win on Monday, beating a Wizards side that is expected to struggle to compete for a playoff spot this season is not really a result to get too excited about.
The 76ers have just one home game in preseason, and despite the absence of George and Embiid, we feel they will still put in a strong showing in front of their fans in this one.
Devesh Jaganath
