By Dan Knerr, Sports Talk Philly staff 
❖ Tip-Off: 7:30 ❖ Location: Brooklyn, NY ❖ TV: NBCSP ❖ Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
The Philadelphia 76ers (35-29) take on the floundering Brooklyn Nets (21-45) at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Sunday night. The Sixers are coming off a hard-fought loss in Miami, and the Nets are coming off a win in Charlotte.
Despite the victory, the Nets are just 2-10 in their last ten games. This presents a chance for the Sixers to regain momentum with a win Sunday.
Back on January 31, the Nets pulled out a win in Brooklyn by an eight-point margin. The Sixers are a different team than they were over almost two months ago, and are playing much better basketball. They will seek revenge in tonight's meeting.
Embiid's Recent (Relative) Struggles
Over the past week or so, Joel Embiid has not been playing up to his own standards. Over his last five games, he is averaging 18.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, and is shooting 41% from the field. These numbers are not anything to scoff at by any stretch of the imagination, but for Embiid, it is.
Considering he is averaging 23.4 points on 48.5% shooting with 11 boards per game, it is evident that he has been slightly underperforming. In particular his shot has not been falling as much as we're accustomed to seeing.
These are growing pains that are to be expected from a developing player, regardless of how talented they are. He is still in his first full season as a pro, and has played like a star from the start. A minor slump like this is nothing to fret about.
Even Embiid has expressed his displeasure with his play as of late.
“Jo thinks if he doesn’t score 30 and 10, it’s a bad game,” Anderson said.
Embiid replied, “Like he said, if I don’t score 30, that has to be a bad game."
Embiid thinks he's been "playing bad recently, although the box score might not say it."https://t.co/sdU4ZY9Ksh
— Jessica Camerato (@JCameratoNBCS) March 7, 2018
Maybe we'll see him break out and have a huge game tonight after coming off a two-day rest.
Dinwiddie's Success in First Match-Up
Spencer Dinwiddie, winner of the Taco Bell Skills Challenge, had a huge night the last time these teams met. He went for 27 points, four assists, and shot 13-of-15 from the free-throw line. He was the team's leading scorer, and played a huge part in the team's win.
The Sixers will need to avoid sending him to the line so much tonight, as he was able to capitalize on too many free opportunities last game.
Dinwiddie is quietly having himself a solid season, averaging 13 points and 6.9 assists per game in his fourth season in the league. He also has a Skills Challenge victory under his belt, as mentioned above.
Although the Nets do not have much star-power, Dinwiddie is a guy who they can lean on to get solid production night in and night out. The Sixers should do all they can on defense to give Dinwiddie a hard time tonight. But they will need to do so with discipline so they aren't constantly sending him to the line like they did in their last match-up.
| Matchup Preview | March 11, 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
@ |  |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Philadelphia 76ers (35-29, 15-19 Away) |
Brooklyn Nets (21-45, 12-21 Home) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
