Joel Embiid and 76ers host Kristaps Porzingis and the Mavericks live on Sky Sports
Watch Dallas Mavericks @ Philadelphia 76ers live on Sky Sports Action in the early hours of Saturday morning (1am)
Saturday 21 December 2019 05:54, UK
Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers host Kristaps Porzingis and the Dallas Mavericks at Wells Fargo Center in the early hours of Saturday morning, live on Sky Sports Action.
Live NBA: Dallas @ Philadelphia
This marks the second game of a three-game homestand for the 76ers (20-8), who are coming off their first home loss of the season in their most recent contest, a 108-104 defeat at the hands of the Miami Heat. They are 14-1 at home and are certainly looking to avoid consecutive home losses.
Despite questions around their late-game offense, the Sixers are shooting 47.3 per cent from the field, which is third-best in the NBA. They are also shooting 36.2 per cent from three-point range (ninth-best in the league) and averaging 26.4 assists per game (third-best in the league).
Joel Embiid leads the 76ers with 22.7 points, 12.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. Tobias Harris is averaging 19.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per outing. Ben Simmons is posting 14.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and a team-high 8.1 assists per game. He also leads the team with 2.1 steals per game.
The Mavericks (18-9) are 7-3 in their last 10 games. They are 1-1 since Luka Doncic (ankle) has been sidelined. An impressive win in Milwaukee was followed by a hard-fought home loss against the Boston Celtics in their most recent contest.
The Mavs are 10-2 on the road and have recorded six straight road wins, including victories in Houston, Phoenix, Los Angeles (vs the Lakers) and Milwaukee.
Without Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis leads the Mavs with 17.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game.
Seth Curry (lower back) and Delon Wright (finger) are both questionable to face Philly and if they were to be sidelined, the Mavs would have to rely very heavily on Jalen Brunson and JJ Barea.
The Mavericks are averaging 117.6 points per game, which is fourth-most in the league. They also average a league-low 12.0 turnovers per game.
Last time out
Numbers game
91.9 - The 76ers rank sixth in defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions - 103.9) which is more than respectable but it becomes downright scary at the end of games.
NBA.com/stats defines clutch as the last five minutes of a game in which the point differential is five or less. The 76ers' clutch defensive rating of 91.9 is downright scary. Only the Bucks, Lakers and Jazz boast a tighter defense at the end of high-pressure games.
One to watch (Mavericks): Jalen Brunson
Luka Doncic's ankle injury has afforded Brunson more minutes in the Mavericks' backcourt and he has seized the opportunity with both hands.
Brunson has played in excess of 30 minutes in Dallas' last three games and shown his worth, particularly as a distributor. He is averaging 10 assists across those three appearances.
One to watch (76ers): Joel Embiid
Embiid is always motivated when he faces a fellow superstar center. Just ask Detroit's Andre Drummond!
A week after criticism from Charles Barkley fuelled a 38-point eruption against Boston, a match-up against the 7ft 3in Porzingis is all-but-certain to fire up the Sixers' All-Star big man.
