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An Eastern Conference showdown is set for Friday night between the Philadelphia 76ers (26-13, 26-13 ATS) and the Orlando Magic (22-19, 27-14 ATS). The 76ers currently sit at 3rd in the East standings, while the Magic are back in 8th. The 76ers are coming off a big matchup against the Nuggets, winning at home 126-121 as 1.5-point favorites. The Magic are coming off a tight road loss to the Hawks, losing 106-104 but covering the spread as 4.5-point underdogs. This is the second of three matchups between these teams this season, with the Sixers winning by 20 on the road last time behind 23 points from Tyrese Maxey. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 EST from the Kia Center in Orlando.
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The last two MVPs in the NBA matched up in the middle when Joel Embiid took on Nikola Jokic on Tuesday. Embiid won that duel with 41 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds while the 76ers won by five. Jokic had 25 points and 19 rebounds in the game. The 76ers also got 25 points from Tyrese Maxey and 24 from Tobias Harris. in the game against Denver. Philly is now on a three game win streak, with all three games being played on their homecourt. They defeated the Kings, Rockets, and Nuggets in the stretch.
Embiid is putting up monster numbers this season, he leads the NBA in scoring with 35.1 PPG, and also adds 11.6 RPG and 6.1 APG. The only thing that may stop him from being MVP is not playing in enough games to meet the criteria for the award. Embiid is on an absurd streak of 18 straight games scoring at least 30 points, with two 50-point games in the mix. With all that scoring, Tyrese Maxey i s still able to average 26.1 PPG while dishing out a team high 6.7 APG. He is the team's top shooter with 3.2 made threes per game on 38.5% shooting from deep. Tobias Harris is a consistent third-option, averaging 17.9 PPG and 6.1 RPG. Kelly Oubre Jr. has been starting at shooting guard lately, and averages 13.1 PPG.
In recent games Philly has turned to veteran Nic Batum to round out the starting lineup, he is a smart role player that adds 6.2 PPG. Pat Baverly and Marcus Morris Sr. have been given to majority of the bench minutes. Philly currently ranks 7th in offensive efficiency and 5th in defensive efficiency according to dunksandthrees.com. The 76ers play at the 13th fastest tempo in the league.
Injury Report:
Out: De'Anthony Melton, Robert Covington
Questionable: Danuel House Jr., Mo Bamba