The Philadelphia 76ers take on perhaps their biggest test of 2017 as they face the Toronto Raptors.
The Sixers are coming off of a solid win over the Milwaukee Bucks. They won 113-104, behind a strong 4th quarter from Joel Embiid. After being fairly quiet during the first three quarters, Embiid snapped and not only took over the offense, but shut down anything that came his way defensively. He finished with 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 5 blocks. Dario Saric helped the Sixers stick around before Embiid stepped in. Saric finished with 17 points and 9 rebounds.
The Raptors are coming off of a win against the Nets. DeMarr DeRozan led the team in scoring with 36 points. He also had 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Cory Joseph, starting for Kyle Lowry, had 33 points on 68.2 percent shooting from the floor. Mercy.
Both teams have won 4 of their last 5 games, so they are currently playing well. They both are 6-4 in their last ten games. The Sixers have faced teams that are not quite as good (record wise) as the Raptors all of 2017 so it's a good chance to see where they stand against some of the best. The last time these two teams met, the Raptors won by 9 points.
Here are a couple of tweets to get an idea of who may be available for this game for the Sixers:
#Sixers Okafor, Embiid, Henderson probable for Wed. McConnell doubtful.
— Tom Moore (@tmoore76ers) January 17, 2017
And this update on Nerlens Noel:
#Sixers Noel: 'It's still a little sore, but I definitely should be able to go tomorrow.'
— Tom Moore (@tmoore76ers) January 17, 2017
There you go. Moore goes on to say that Okafor is sore and Embiid is struggling with flu. McConnell and Noel are both struggling with sprained body parts. Wrist (McConnell) and ankle (Noel). With this in mind, here are the projected starters:
Projected Starters:
Sixers:
PG: Sergio Rodriguez
SG: Nik Stauskas
SF: Robert Covington
PF: Ersan Ilyasova
C: Joel Embiid
Raptors:
PG: Kyle Lowry
SG: DeMarr DeRozan
SF: DeMarre Carroll
PF: Lucas Nogueira
C: Jonas Valanciunas
Game Info:
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
When: 7PM
Watch it: CSN Philly
Hear it: 97.5 The Fanatic