Photo courtesy of NBA.com
No Kevin Durant? No problem for the Thunder (34-10) last night as they easily disposed of the Boston Celtics 101-83. The come to the Wells Fargo Center to face the Sixers (14-29) winners of their last six straight. Those included victories over Golden State, San Antonio and Portland. The Sixers, on the other hand, are 1-5 in their last six games and are still struggling to get any sort of offensive consistency going. They will be playing the Thunder a night after losing to the Raptors, 104-95. Let's take a look at tonight's matchup a little closer.
Tip-off is slated for 7:30PM on CSN.
- We have to hope the Sixers prepared for Kevin Durant to play, because he has been super hot his past six. He has scored just under 40 points per game on 58.3% shooting. Right now, Durant is expected to play.
- In an article from CSNPhilly, Thad Young had this to say – “I have known Kevin since we were in the 10th grade and to see how he has elevated his game, he is well on his way to being one of the all-time greats,” Thaddeus Young said knowing he will draw the defensive assignment should Durant suit up. “He is averaging 37 this month so his play speaks for itself. He is a leader and you just have to find a way to stop him because he is going to get a lot of touches and he will put the ball up a lot of times. He is a superstar in this league.”
- Even with Durant playing, the backups for the Thunder have showed they can fill-in for him and fellow All-Star Russell Westrbrook. Serge Ibaka led OKC against Boston with 21 points and seven boards.
- Perry Jones started for Durant and scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds. Reggie Jackson filled in for Westbrook, who has been out since Christmas day, and scored 14 points and dished out eight assists.
- A lot of the Sixers’ recent prblems are linked with Thaddeus Young’s numbers taking a decline. After averaging 20.1 points and 6.8 rebounds on 52.9 percent shooting during December, Young is averaging 16.8 points and 5.2 boards a game on 44.9 percent shooting in January.
- Philadelphia still has something giong for them if they plan to win, scoring 51.4 points in the paint per game, good for second best in the NBA.
- If the Sixers plan to compete in this game, they cannot be afraid to attack the rim, even with Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins lurking to block shots. The duo has also done a lot in the rebound column, helping OKC own the best rebounding average in the NBA with 46.5.
- Another thing that will be key to victory is the long-range shooting. The Thunder hold teams to 97 points per and the Sixers will need to shoot better if they want to keep up with them. Last night against Toronto, they shot 6-20 from behind the arc.
- Sixers did lose to the Raptors, but still showed some great signs. Thad scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Hawes scored 14 and grabbed 12 boards. MCW led the team in scoring with 20 points and five assists. Hollis Thompson had a solid game off of the injury-depleted bench. In 24 minutes, he scored 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting. Thompson also had seven rebounds.
Prediction: Although the last two matchups at the WFC have gone to OT, the Sixers have lost eight straight to the Thunder. Durant is in the lineup . I think the Thunder will be too much. OKC wins this one, 109-91.
Brandon Apter is a contributor to Sixerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @ApterShock
