8:10 pm
April 20

76ers @ Raptors

Who will WIN this matchup?

Philadelphia 76ers (51-31)

@ Toronto Raptors (48-34)

 

Current odds:

Philadelphia 76ers: (-125)

Toronto Raptors: (+105)

 

• The spread for the game is Philadelphia by 1.5 points.

• With Scottie Barnes (sprained ankle) out for Toronto, Embiid dominated with 31 points and 11 rebounds Monday night in Philadelphia’s 112-97 Game 2 victory. Gary Trent Jr. (illness) and Thaddeus Young (thumb) both saw limited playing time as the 76ers held their home-court advantage in the best-of-seven series.

• There was some chippiness in the first quarter, with Embiid and Toronto’s OG Anunoby each getting technical fouls after shoves. Embiid said that being physical was by design after Nurse had criticized the officiating after Game 1, in which Embiid had five fouls.

• “From the get-go, I didn’t really want them to set that tone,” Embiid said. “I wanted myself and us to set that tone. That’s why I picked up that first early technical foul, because I felt that there was a missed call on the other end and on defense. I just wanted to make sure that the refs just let us know how physical they wanted the game to be.” “He’s the most dominant player in this league, to me, physically,” 76ers coach Doc Rivers said. “And that’s what we told him, ‘Be who you are. Be dominant. Be physical.’ I thought, the first three minutes, they spent time trying to hit him and deliver blows to him and I was like, ‘No, Jo, you be the dominant guy.’ I loved how he ran down the floor into the paint (for) rim runs. That’s good for us, and we need that more.”

• Near the end of Game 2, Embiid talked to Nurse. “I told him, respectfully, I told him to stop (complaining) about calls,” Embiid said, “because I saw what he said last game.” Said Nurse: “He was saying to me that ‘I’m going to keep making all the free throws if you keep fouling me,’ and I said, ‘Well, you might have to.’ A good player, man. I have a lot of respect for him.”

5/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
Philadelphia 76ers
Previous Pick
Next Pick