Joel Embiid looks to continue his torrid scoring ways on Friday when the Philadelphia 76ers visit the Orlando Magic.
Embiid scored 41 points for the second straight game and added 10 assists and seven rebounds to lead the 76ers to their third consecutive win, a 126-121 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday.
Embiid, the reigning NBA MVP, got the better of Nikola Jokic, a two-time winner of the award and the reigning NBA Finals MVP.
“I’m extremely competitive, if anybody didn’t know,” Embiid said, per the Philadelphia Inquirer. “So if you are telling me that this is the best player in the league, and this guy is better than me, of course, I’m going to go out and try to see for myself if people are right.
“It can be Giannis (Antetokounmpo). It can be Steph (Curry), it can be KD (Kevin Durant), it can be Anthony Davis, all those guys. I just want to see for myself if they really bother me and what I can do to be better than them.”
Tuesday’s scoring output is nothing new for Embiid, who has strung together 18 straight games with at least 30 points to tie Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor for the sixth-longest streak in NBA history. Embiid’s scintillating run spans through three missed games in a row because of knee soreness and seven in a nine-game stretch because of a sore knee and sprained ankle.
Embiid sat out Philadelphia’s 112-92 win in Orlando on Dec. 27. Tyrese Maxey had 23 points and Tobias Harris and De’Anthony Melton each added 22 to pace the 76ers.
Harris also stepped up in Embiid’s recent absence to score 32 and 37 points against the Atlanta Hawks and Sacramento Kings, respectively. He finished with 24 points against Denver, however he was a game-best plus-13 to go along with five rebounds and two blocks.
“I’m just trying to be effective,” Harris said, per the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Everywhere on the court I’m trying to make an impact, whether it’s on the defensive end, finding out a way to help our team to be more versatile as a group.
“At the same time, just figuring out different spots to be in.”
The Magic have lost four of their last five entering the opener of a three-game homestand on Friday. They dropped a 106-104 decision to the Hawks on Wednesday to conclude a four-game road trip.
Paolo Banchero scored 26 points for Orlando, however Dejounte Murray sank a 17-footer as time expired to lift Atlanta.
Franz Wagner has missed seven straight games due to a right ankle sprain, but Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said that he’s expected to return “sooner than later.” Although Wagner has yet to return to the court, he has been readily available to his teammates and often communicates what he sees to his teammates from his spot on the bench.
“He’s such a great basketball mind and he’s a great human, so it’s always good being around him,” Jalen Suggs said, per the Orlando Sentinel. “I can’t wait to get him back in the fold, but he’s been a part of everything we’ve been doing still.”
Wagner scored 24 points, Suggs had 20 and Banchero added 19 points and nine rebounds in the first encounter versus the 76ers.
–Field Level Media
