The Philadelphia 76ers' trip to the Los Angeles Lakers is not quite the blockbuster clash it might have been, but Thursday's game should prove no less intriguing.
Rather than seeing MVP candidates Joel Embiid and LeBron James battle it out at Staples Center, the Sixers and the Lakers will attempt to show how they can cope without their leading men.
Embiid has been on the sidelines since March 12, over which time Philly have gone 5-1, but they crucially have the benefit of Ben Simmons, their second All-Star now fit and firing.
LA do not have the same luxury, as Anthony Davis is also out, with the team beaten by the Atlanta Hawks as James went down and again in his absence in Tuesday's game with the New Orleans Pelicans.
This could still be an NBA Finals preview, though, and the matchup will undoubtedly draw plenty of interested eyes...
TOP PERFORMERS
Los Angeles Lakers - Dennis Schroder
Schroder was a Sixth Man of the Year contender last year - missing out to now team-mate Montrezl Harrell - but now finds himself as the most important player in the champions' team with both James and Davis out.
The point guard has started all but four of LA's games this season, his absence coinciding with a four-game losing streak.
Defeat on Thursday would mean another stretch of four straight defeats and it will be up to Schroder to ensure that does not happen.
Coach Frank Vogel talked up Schroder's importance after the Hawks game and his 15 points against the Pelicans maintained his seasonal average at the same mark, third-most for the Lakers behind their big two.
Philadelphia 76ers - Ben Simmons
As the only remaining All-Star in this clash between two of the league's top teams, Simmons will be expected to make the difference.
The former first overall pick has previously been tasked with guarding James but should be freed in the absence of superstar opponents, perhaps able to focus his efforts instead on scoring and creating shots for others.
In a strange quirk, Simmons' four best scoring games this season have come in defeats. Fifth on that list, however, is the win against the Golden State Warriors last time out when he put up 22.
One of his four triple-doubles this season came in the previous game against the Lakers.
KEY BATTLE - CAN LAKERS HALT HARRIS?
That sole other matchup between the teams this season was settled by Tobias Harris' 15-footer with three seconds remaining as he switched onto the more diminutive Alex Caruso.
Harris' 10-for-16 shooting in that game was vital and the Lakers, without their best defender in Davis, must more effectively guard the forward.
While Simmons is the star name in this encounter, Harris is second only to Embiid on the Sixers with a career-high 20.8 points per game this year.
The Lakers will at least know to pay attention to Harris in 'clutch' moments, his two points in February among 71 this season that have him 18th in the league in such situations.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Lakers have the slight edge in the teams' all-time regular season record with 146 wins to the Sixers' 138 going back to their respective beginnings in Minneapolis and Syracuse.
Philly's dramatic 107-106 success earlier this year was their fifth meeting with LA since James moved to the Western Conference outfit, in which time the Sixers are 4-1 - albeit the four-time MVP missed the first defeat.
Embiid has only faced the Lakers six times, with a 4-2 record. LA are 4-3 in the seven Philly's main man has missed in his time in the league.
James Harden believes Brooklyn Nets have found good chemistry on the court despite the absence of key men Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash said Durant will not be risked for road games against Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons this week but is the final phase of rehabilitation.
Durant has been sidelined by a hamstring strain since mid-February and was absent from the team that topped the Portland Trail Blazers 116-112 on Tuesday.
The 32-year-old averages 29 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists from 19 games, but Nash said he will be absent again for the trips to Utah and Detroit on Wednesday and Friday respectively.
Harden led the way for the Nets against the Trail Blazers with a double-double as they go toe-to-toe with Philadelphia 76ers the Eastern Conference.
He posted 25 points and a career high-tying 17 assists to fuel the Nets in Portland as they won without Durant and fellow superstar Irving, who was absent for personal reasons.
Harden claimed the Nets have clicked into gear ahead of meeting with the Jazz on Wednesday.
"The team chemistry, it's there. It's right where we need it to be," the 31-year-old told NBA.com
"Obviously missing Kevin and Kyrie, I think everyone else has a sense of what their roles are, and they're doing it to the best of their ability every single night.
"I'm really proud of the guys. In order to be a special team like we're more than capable of being, we've got to have a sense of urgency every possession.
"Our sense of urgency in the way we play and our effort and our intensity on the defensive end, has to be there no matter what."
On the Jazz's recent improvements Harden added: "I think they're healthy. They're healthy and they finally have clicked.
"I think that loss in the playoffs in the bubble last year got to them a little bit and so they have a fully healthy team that's well coached and everybody knows their role and they have a great system and it works for them."
The Nets (30-14) remain within a game of the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers (31-13) who held on to beat the Golden State Warriors 108-98 on Tuesday.
Behind Tobias Harris' 25 points and 13 rebounds and Ben Simmons' 22 points, the 76ers earned their fifth consecutive road victory – the team's longest winning streak away from home since winning seven straight in 2018.
76ers coach Doc Rivers was pleased with the natural rhythm to the way in which Harris performed as he turns his attention to Thursday's game with the LA Lakers.
Rivers said: ''What I liked about his game, he didn't force it, he kind of just let the game come to him. And he made plays, not just with his shot but with the pass.
''As a group, we've won nine out of 10 games, the guys are playing good basketball - no need to talk about it."
Los Angeles Lakers coach Frank Vogel is prioritising offensive work after seeing his side suffer a third successive defeat in the absence of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
James suffered an ankle sprain last week, the issue forcing him to join Davis on the injury list, with the latter struggling due to a calf strain and Achilles tendinosis.
While James is only a recent absentee, Davis has already missed a considerable chunk of the season, with the Lakers 7-10 without him.
Center Davis is not expected back for at least another three weeks and there is growing concern James may yet need a similar amount of rest to avoid aggravating the problem.
The Lakers' latest setback came at the hands of the New Orleans Pelicans in a 128-111 loss, meaning they have dropped to fourth in the Western Conference, and Vogel knows where he will be focusing much of his attention.
"We have a lot of emphasis on offensive side in last few days with LeBron and AD [Davis] out," he said. "I thought we had some growth, some real growth, some real positives about what we're doing offensively.
"We had a stretch in the second quarter where we hit a big drop that really hurt us in this game, but with the emphasis on the offensive end we didn't play well enough.
"We're going to miss guys like that, LeBron and AD, on both sides of the ball. So getting us organised offensively is probably by top priority right now.
"I know we can tighten up defensively but we've got to be better on that end."
Nevertheless, Vogel is also adamant he has enough quality at his disposal without James and Davis to steer the defending NBA champions back on track.
"We are staying positive, we have great belief in this group," he continued. "Even with Lebron and AD out, we can win games in this stretch and there's going to be a silver lining at the end of it.
"The growth we exhibit while shorthanded will pay dividends down the stretch. We're going to remain positive, keep playing super hard like today.
"We've just got to execute better and collect as many wins along the way as we can."
The Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers continue to go toe-to-toe in the Eastern Conference after both championship hopefuls won in the NBA on Tuesday.
James Harden led the way with a double-double as the star-studded Nets topped the Portland Trail Blazers 116-112.
In the absence of fellow superstars Kyrie Irving (personal matter) and Kevin Durant (hamstring), Harden posted 25 points and a career high-tying 17 assists to fuel the short-handed Nets in Portland.
Jeff Green finished with 20 points – 15 in the first half – Nicolas Claxton put up 16 of his own, while Blake Griffin had eight points, five rebounds and two steals in his second Nets appearance.
Enes Kanter scored 19 points and collected 19 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who also had 22 points from All-Star Damian Lillard.
The Nets (30-14) remain within a game of the Eastern Conference-leading 76ers (31-13) after they held on to beat the Golden State Warriors 108-98.
Behind Tobias Harris' 25 points and 13 rebounds and Ben Simmons' 22 points, the 76ers earned their fifth consecutive road victory – the team's longest winning streak away from home since winning seven straight in 2018.
The Warriors – without star Stephen Curry (back) – threatened to complete a stunning comeback, having been outscored 35-17 at the end of the opening quarter, while they trailed by more than 20 points before half-time.
Zion makes history
Zion Williamson helped the New Orleans Pelicans top the slumping Los Angeles Lakers 128-111. The 20-year-old's 27 points and nine rebounds saw him become the first NBA player younger than 21 to score at least 20 points in 21 consecutive games. Pelicans team-mate Brandon Ingram posted a season-high 36 points.
MVP candidate Nikola Jokic had his 12th triple-double of the season as the Denver Nuggets beat the Orlando Magic 110-99. Jokic posted 28 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists for a franchise-best 53rd career triple-double. Only Washington's Russell Westbrook (14) has more triple-doubles this season.
It is almost impossible to replace Joel Embiid, but Tony Bradley stepped up in a big way for the 76ers. The 23-year-old was flawless against the Warriors, going eight-of-eight for 18 points and 11 rebounds. Bradley became the first 76ers player not to miss a shot in a game on a minimum eight attempts since Dikembe Mutombo in 2002.
All-Star Julius Randle finished with 37 points to lead the New York Knicks past the lowly Washington Wizards 131-113.
Lakers feeling absence of star duo
The Lakers – who came out of the All-Star break on a 4-0 run – are now 0-3 since LeBron James suffered an ankle injury, with fellow star Anthony Davis (calf) also sidelined.
Tyler Herro headlined the Miami Heat's woes after last season's NBA Finals participants lost 110-100 at home to the Phoenix Suns. Herro was three-of-11 from the field, while he was just one-of-six from three-point range for seven points in 26 minutes.
Robinson throws it down!
New York's Mitchell Robinson got up high for a powerful dunk in the second quarter against the Wizards.
Tuesday's results
Denver Nuggets 110-99 Orlando Magic
New York Knicks 131-113 Washington Wizards
New Orleans Pelicans 128-111 Los Angeles Lakers
Phoenix Suns 110-100 Miami Heat
Brooklyn Nets 116-112 Portland Trail Blazers
Philadelphia 76ers 108-98 Golden State Warriors
Nets at Jazz
It is back-to-back outings for the high-flying Nets (30-14), who travel to the NBA-leading Utah Jazz (31-11) on Wednesday.
Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant remains sidelined until at least Friday as the former MVP is at a "critical" point in his recovery from a hamstring injury, according to Steve Nash.
Durant has been sidelined since February 13 due to a hamstring strain, which forced him to sit out the NBA All-Star Game this month.
The star-studded Nets are second in the Eastern Conference and as they eye a run to the NBA Finals, first-year head coach Nash is not prepared to rush Durant back from injury.
"We just felt like it didn't benefit him to travel across the country while he is trying to get that critical last part of his rehab done," Nash said as Durant sat out Tuesday's 116-112 win over the Portland Trail Blazers – the first of a three-game road trip.
The Nets will face the NBA-leading Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons before returning home to Brooklyn to host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.
"Just trying to make sure that functional strength is there and that he's — we're confident that he can re-enter playing safely. That is the thing, right? Kevin is doing very well," Nash said.
"If this was the playoffs, there's a chance he'd be back, you know, very soon. But there's no point in taking a big risk with him when the most important thing is to get him back for the remainder of the season."
Nash added: "He is working out on the court pretty much every day, he looks great."
Durant is averaging 29.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game for the Nets this season.
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry will be sidelined for at least another week after an MRI showed inflammation in his tailbone.
Curry has not played since suffering a bruised tailbone in the Warriors' win over the Houston Rockets last week.
The former two-time MVP was already ruled out of his third consecutive game – Tuesday's NBA showdown with the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers.
But Curry will miss at least four more games, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr revealed prior to the 76ers clash.
"We're going to re-evaluate in a week," Kerr told reporters. "He got an MRI this morning and it showed inflammation in that tailbone.
"He had made some progress the first couple of days just resting and then he did a little bit more work [Monday] and was still pretty sore.
"So our training staff and Steph put their heads together and decided this is going to be a little bit longer than we thought and hoped. So we'll re-evaluate in a week."
Curry is averaging 29.0 points (fifth best in the NBA), 6.2 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game for the Warriors this season.
The three-time NBA champion has made the most three-pointers in the league in 2020-21 (182), while his three-point average of 4.7 is the best in the NBA.
Brooklyn Nets star James Harden has been cleared to face the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA.
Harden was listed as questionable for Tuesday's matchup against the Trail Blazers in Portland due to neck soreness.
Former MVP Harden appeared to hurt his neck during a collision with Garrison Mathews in Sunday's 113-106 win over the Washington Wizards.
But Harden will take to the court away to the Trail Blazers, while fellow stars Kyrie Irving (personal matter) and Kevin Durant (hamstring) are sidelined.
Harden was on the court for 39 minutes against the Wizards, the most for any Nets player. Prior to Sunday's victory, the former Houston Rockets star had featured for 40-plus minutes in four of the franchise's previous eights outings either side of the All-Star break.
This season, Harden is averaging the most minutes in the NBA with 37.9, with Julius Randle of the New York Knicks next on 37.
Harden is averaging 25.3 points, a league-best 11.1 assists and 8.0 rebounds per game for the star-studded Nets this season.
He tops the list for most assists in the league in 2020-21 (410), while he ranks fifth for points/assists/rebounds averaged per game (44.4).
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