The Philadelphia 76ers were looking to continue their winning ways to begin this five-game road trip as they paid a visit to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night. It was the second night of a back-to-back for the Sixers after beginning the trip in Salt Lake City with a win on Saturday.
The Lakers certainly gave Philadelphia some trouble as LeBron James continues to defy logic and beat Father Time at his own game, but Joel Embiid was too much for Los Angeles to handle and the Sixers walked away with a 113-112 win to begin the road trip 2-0. Embiid had 35 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Sixers on the night.
James Harden added 24 points, 13 assists, and seven rebounds, Tyrese Maxey had 16 off the bench, and Shake Milton added eight. Tobias Harris had 15 points and three blocks in his return from a one-game absence due to injury and Georges Niang added eight.
Here are the player grades following the win:
The Beard continued his scoring rampage from Saturday as he had seven points in the first quarter. He continues to look like he is getting back to the player he used to be in terms of his scoring. The 3-point shot continues to be something that is coming back to Harden’s game as he finds efficiency with that shot. Combine that with his ability to still get to the rim and draw fouls and these are all good things for the Sixers. That scoring will be a big factor as Philadelphia moves forward with this 2022-23 season.
The Sixers made a lineup adjustment with Melton replacing Maxey in the starting lineup. Likely, for defensive purposes. The two-way stud out of USC picked up an early block on Dennis Schroder as he made an immediate impact on that end of the floor. He did have a tough start on the offensive end as he was unable to take advantage of any of the open looks he was receiving. His work on the defensive end was encouraging, however.
After missing a game due to left knee soreness, Harris had some struggles to start the game. He missed a few wide-open opportunities on the offensive end and he also had a turnover which led to a Lakers dunk the other way. Defensively, he was active on that end and he was bothering LA when they had dribble penetration. He was much better offensively after halftime as he was much more aggressive in going to the rim. That then allowed him to get into his spots and develop a rhythm within the offense.
Unfortunately for Tucker,…
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