NBA highlights on Nov. 8: 76ers defeat Celtics

The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Boston Celtics 106-103 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday, giving their opponents their second consecutive loss while rising to lead the Eastern Conference themselves.

Though Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum are the best players on each side, the most interesting matchup in this game was between Embiid and Kristaps Porzingis. The Celtics didn’t have 2.21-meter-tall Porzingis guard 2.13-meter-tall Embiid from the beginning. Instead, they had 1.93-meter-tall Jrue Holiday guard Embiid in the high post and sent Porzingis to double-team him or deliver defensive help when Embiid posted up or powered his way into the paint.

Though Embiid still shot 4-for-7 from the field to get 10 points in the first quarter, he also committed two turnovers. At the same time, the 76ers failed to exploit Embiid’s distraction of their opponents’ defense, missing all nine 3-pointers they shot in the first quarter. Many of those bricks led to long rebounds, which made it easy for the Celtics to launch fast break. That’s why the Celtics led 27-22 after the first period.

Porzingis averaged two triples at 42.9 percent per game before Wednesday and is very tricky to guard. If a small defender guards him, he may not be able to deflect Porzingis’ shooting, and if he is guarded by someone who matches his size, the defender won’t be able to help protect the paint.

The 76ers chose to have Embiid guard Porzingis but didn’t tell him to close out every time Porzingis received the ball. Having missed both of his triple attempts in the first quarter, Porzingis failed to punish his opponents’ defensive choice, but that was not the case for the whole game since he made two shots from downtown during the Celtics’ rally in the final minutes of the final period.

However, Embiid closing in on Porzingis didn’t mean he stayed behind on every defensive possession. On the contrary, he was very alert to joining his teammates and ball-pressuring Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown when either of them tried to attack off the dribble. As a result, the star duo combined to take no more than 27 shots. The same amount as Tyrese Maxey. Though Porzingis and Derrick White scored 29 and 19 points for the Celtics, respectively, Tatum and Brown had a combined 27 points, which the 76ers would love to see.

While Embiid invested more effort in defense, Maxey, Tobias Harris and Kelly Oubre Jr. shouldered more offensive duties, especially in launching early offense. The three’s performances enabled the 76ers to outscore the Celtics 24-19 in fast break points. They didn’t produce the best efficiency, but output mattered more in a low-scoring contest like the one on Wednesday night in Philadelphia.

Other games on Wednesday (away teams appear first):

Los Angeles Clippers 93-100 Brooklyn Nets

The Clippers lost their third game in a row, the second straight loss in which James Harden played. The lack of coordination among him, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Russell Westbrook was too obvious and too costly for the team. Harden’s will to play an assisting role made him shoot only nine field goals (FGs), but the five assists he delivered came with the same number of turnovers. Meanwhile, the other three combined to go 20-for-54 from the floor, hardly worth Harden’s sacrifice.

The Clippers also struggled with their poor squad depth after giving up a big chunk of their regular rotations in the trade for Harden. They were outscored by the Nets 17-45 in bench unit points. In fact, Lonnie Walker IV alone got more points (21) than all four backup players of the Clippers.

Phoenix Suns 116-115 Chicago Bulls

Bradley Beal, who cost the Suns a lot of assets to acquire during the offseason, debuted for the team at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. His gun was still rusty, which could be seen by his 3-for-12 shooting performance from the field, but Beal got two blocks in the fourth quarter, which was a little happy surprise since he has never been a good defender.

Kevin Durant played the biggest offensive role for the Suns with 25 points and nine assists. Grayson Allen drained eight triples to drop a team-high 26 points, but Jusuf Nurkic made the game-winning shot. He first stole Nikola Vucevic’s ball when his side trailed by one point with about 20 seconds to go and then made a layup assisted by Durant for his side to lead until the end of the game.

Golden State Warriors 105-108 Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets missed their second-in-command Jamal Murray, who will be sidelined until the end of November due to a hamstring injury, while the Warriors didn’t play their defensive spine, Draymond Green, at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. The two sides’ aces, Nikola Jokic and Stephen Curry, faced different types of defense. Jokic had a double-double of 35 points and 13 rebounds but only delivered five assists. Meanwhile, Curry drained six triples but missed all five of his shots within the 3-point line.

The Warriors had two chances to tie the score in the final 15 seconds of the fourth quarter. Jokic missed two free throws when the Nuggets led 107-105, but then Curry failed to make a floater. Reggie Jackson shot 1-for-2 at the free throw line, but Thompson lost control of the ball when he tried to take the final shot.

Washington Wizards 132-116 Charlotte Hornets

Utah Jazz 118-134 Indiana Pacers

San Antonio Spurs 105-126 New York Knicks

Los Angeles Lakers 94-128 Houston Rockets

Miami Heat 108-102 Memphis Grizzlies

Detroit Pistons 118-120 Milwaukee Bucks

New Orleans Pelicans 101-122 Minnesota Timberwolves

Cleveland Cavaliers 120-128 Oklahoma City Thunder

Toronto Raptors 127-116 Dallas Mavericks

Portland Trail Blazers 118-121 Sacramento Kings