NBA action will see the Portland Trail Blazers take on the Philadelphia 76ers tonight. Here we look at the preview and TV schedule for the game.
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The Portland Trail Blazers will take on the Philadelphia 76ers tonight with both teams looking to climb up the ladder.
The Sixers are embroiled in a three-way race to bag the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. Joel Embiid and co. currently sit sixth in the East and they know that it might lead to a first-round clash against the Celtics if they remain static in the standings.
A higher seeding might help them avoid the big 3 in Bucks, Raptors or Celtics.
The Blazers missed out on a win against a Kawhi-less Clippers after star guard Damian Lillard missed free throws late in the fourth quarter. The superstar got into a spat with Clippers star Paul George after the game and would surely come out swinging against the 76ers.
Blazers find themselves in a tough fight for the final playoff spot. However, a good showing in the final few seeding games could help them get that 8th seed and enter the play in tournament. An 8th seed in the play-in tournament would mean the 9th seed will have to beat the Blazers twice in two games to the enter the playoffs.
Where to watch Sixers vs Blazers on TV and Online?
NBA TV will be streaming the game and it can be accessed on both the NBA website and the mobile app.
Buy the League pass in order to view NBA TV on your desktops, mobiles, tablets and consoles.
The game is set for a 6:30 PM ET tip-off and will be streamed on NBC SPORTS NORTHWEST and NBC SPORTS PHILADELPHIA.
Team Preview – Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers know that one more loss could hamper their chances of getting into the playoffs drastically. With the Grizzlies ahead by 1.5 games and Suns winning all their five games in their bubble so far, the Blazers cannot afford another slip-up. Damian Lillard will rue his missed chances late in the fourth quarter which led to their loss against the Clippers.
Lillard needs to bring his clutch play to the fore, if the Blazers want to have any chance of making it to the play-in tournament.
CJ McCollum came up with 29 points in the previous encounter and his playing a great Robin to Lillard. Melo too has come up with some clutch plays in the Bubble.
Zach Collins and Nurkic have supported the trio well by improving the team in the paint and need to step up more in order to continue their winning record inside the bubble.
Expected starting line-up: Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, Carmelo Anthony, Zach Collins, Jusuf Nurkic
Team Preview – Philadelphia 76ers
The squad will look towards Tobias Harris and Joel Embiid to continue with their winning performances inside the bubble.
Tobias Harris has stepped up in the absence of Simmons and has been their second star behind Embiid. The Sixers have settled on their rotations and are gaining confidence with each passing game. Joel Embiid leads Philadelphia with 24 points, 12 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game this season while Tobias Harris puts up 19.6 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.
Josh Richardson and Al Horford have backed Embiid and Harris in the seeding games so far. However, with Simmons out because of a knee injury, the Sixers need to re-invent their offensive strategy.
The defense has been working well for the Sixers and they would be banking on it to get past the Blazers.
Expected starting line-up: Shake Milton, Josh Richardson, Tobias Harris, Al Horford, Joel Embiid
