LA Clippers vs Philadelphia 76ers prediction and combined starting 5 - April 16th, 2021 | NBA Season 2020-21
The LA Clippers will face the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center on Friday. Tyronn Lue's team has the longest winning streak in the NBA with seven consecutive triumphs, while Doc Rivers' men have taken three consecutive wins and remain at the top of the Eastern Conference.
This game could be a preview of a possible NBA Finals matchup. Both the LA Clippers and the Philadelphia 76ers are among the top contenders in their respective conferences and are built for the postseason.
The LA Clippers and the Philadelphia 76ers will meet for the second and final time of the 2020-21 NBA regular season.
The Clippers won the first game at Staples Center with a 122-112 scoreline on March 27th, but the Sixers played without Joel Embiid.
LA Clippers vs Philadelphia 76ers prediction
This will be a close game between two teams that are preparing for the final stretch of the NBA season.
The Philadelphia 76ers (38-17 record) have been solid at home, with a 21-5 record, which is the second-best in the entire NBA in the current season. Still, the LA Clippers (39-18) will be a huge challenge, as they are on the best streak of the season and have 17 wins in 27 road games.
The game will also be a fight between two teams with contrasting styles. The LA Clippers now have the best Offensive Rating in the league, with 118.5 points allowed per 100 possessions. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia 76ers are the second-best defensive unit in the NBA, with 107.2 points allowed per 100 possessions.
LA Clippers vs Philadelphia 76ers combined starting 5
Point Guard - Ben Simmons | Shooting Guard - Kawhi Leonard | Small Forward - Paul George | Power Forward - Tobias Harris | Center - Joel Embiid.
Ben Simmons has been essential for the Philadelphia 76ers on both ends of the basketball court this season. He is averaging 14.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.1 assists, and 1.6 assists per game and is the team's best perimeter defender.
Simmons is one of the main candidates for the 2020-21 NBA Defensive Player of the Year award and is sixth in the NBA in Defensive Rating.
Meanwhile, the LA Clippers' best player is Kawhi Leonard. However, he has not played in the last three games, as he was sidelined with a foot injury. He is listed as questionable for the game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Leonard is putting up 26 points, six rebounds and five assists per game with 52/39/88 shooting splits.
His wing partner is Paul George, who is fresh off being named the Player of the Week of the Western Conference. George is posting 23 points, six rebounds and five assists per game, with 48/44/89 shooting splits. He did not play the LA Clippers' last game against the Detroit Pistons.
Tobias Harris has been excellent in the current NBA season and is having a career year. He is averaging 20 points, seven rebounds and three assists per game, with 52/41/89 shooting splits.
Embiid, on the other hand, is the team's best player on both ends of the court and has been dominant in the 2020-21 NBA season. His chances for the NBA MVP award might be getting slim due to the number of games he's missed (he played 37 of his team's 55 games), but his dominance this year is unquestioned.
Still, Embiid is averaging 29.8 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, a steal and 1.5 blocks per game so far. He's also been efficient from the floor, with a 52% field-goal percentage, 39% efficiency from the three-point line (3.1 attempts per game), and 85% from the free-throw line. He is also the team leader in Defensive Rating and ranks third in the NBA.
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