Philadelphia 76ers at Portland Trail Blazers 11/2/19: Starting Lineups, Matchup Preview, Daily Fantasy
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Philadelphia 76ers at Portland Trail Blazers Preview
The Philadelphia 76ers are the last remaining undefeated team in the NBA, but that will be tested tonight as they are shorthanded with starting center Joel Embiid starting his two-game suspension after an on-court tussle with Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns. The 76ers are 4-0 and sit atop the Eastern Conference.
Portland, who is hosting the 76ers at the Moda Center tonight, is currently seventh in the Western Conference with a 3-2 record. They have yet to win a game at home, but they have their own frontcourt issues to deal with, especially if Hassan Whiteside sits out tonight, giving them four big men who will be relegated to the sidelines in suits.
TV Schedule
Date: 11/02/19
Time: 10 PM ET
Arena: Moda Center, Portland, OR
Channel: NBA TV
Injuries
76ers: Shake Milton (O), Josh Richardson (DTD), Joel Embiid (Susp)
Trail Blazers: Pau Gasol, Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins (O), Hassan Whiteside (Q)
Philadelphia 76ers Starting Lineup
PG: Ben Simmons
SG: Josh Richardson
SF: Matisse Thybulle
PF: Tobias Harris
C: Al Horford
76ers Analysis
Aside from a skirmish between Joel Embiid and Karl-Anthony Towns, which ended with both players receiving suspensions, the 76ers won big against Minnesota in what seemed like it would be a marquee matchup.
76ers coach Brett Brown said the tussle spoke a bit to Philadelphia’s edge.
“It’s our creed. It’s Philly hard. It’s Philly edge. There’s an authenticity, it’s real,” he said. “Every time we can, we like to point to an example, ‘Yup, this is Philly hard. Yup, that thing had an edge.’ This is real. There’s a spirit amongst our team that’s authentic. It is Philadelphia and life moves on. That’s part of it.”
In the game, six 76ers players finished in double figures, led by Embiid’s 19 points. Furkan Korkmaz came off the bench for 17 points and Al Horford has worked himself into Philly’s system rather quickly. He had 12 points and 16 rebounds against Minnesota.
76ers Quick Links: 76ers Starting Lineup, 76ers Roster, 76ers Depth Chart, 76ers Injuries, 76ers News, 76ers Schedule
Portland Trail Blazers Starting Lineup
PG: Damian Lillard
SG: CJ McCollum
SF: Rodney Hood
PF: Anthony Tolliver
C: Hassan Whiteside
Trail Blazers Analysis
The Trail Blazers have had some struggles lately. They had a big lead on the San Antonio Spurs last week before giving it all up and going down big. Damian Lillard willed the Blazers back into the game and had a game-winning three rim out on the second night of a back-to-back.
So far, what has been clear, is that although Lillard is capable of big nights, the Blazers are better when they get everyone going.
“Sometimes, we’re going to be able to have success when I’m making shots, taking over, when I’m the one scoring the ball. But I think it’ll go further and it will be stronger and we’ll be able to do it more often when we trust in each other making that extra pass,” Lillard said.
That was the case on Wednesday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder in a 102-99 win. Lillard and CJ McCollum combined for 45 points, but they also had solid contributions from Hassan Whiteside and Kent Bazemore.
Blazers Quick Links: Blazers Starting Lineup, Blazers Roster, Blazers Depth Chart, Blazers Injuries, Blazers News, Blazers Schedule
Key Player Matchups
Ben Simmons vs. Damian Lillard
Simmons has a large height advantage and is also a great perimeter defender so he’ll likely be tasked with trying to slow Lillard, who is averaging just a shade under 30 points per game this season. Defensively, Terry Stotta will likely look to Rodney Hood to defend Simmons. Whoever defends him will have to try limiting Simmons’ penetration into the paint. Keeping him on the perimeter is key since Simmons has yet to attempt a three-pointer this season.
Josh Richardson vs. CJ McCollum
If Richardson plays, this could be one of the more interesting matchups. Richardson is playing well with Philadelphia. He seems to be a great fit early on and he can score when needed. His averages may not leap off the page, but he’s doing what he needs to do for the 76ers to win games, and at 4-0, it seems to be working. McCollum is averaging 23 points per game and is knocking down 43 percent of his long-range shots, so Richardson will have his work cut out for him if McCollum brings the flamethrower tonight.
Daily Fantasy
Ben Simmons and Damian Lillard are fantasy studs in tonight’s matchup. Simmons somehow avoided a suspension and will play tonight. When he does play, he provides help in just about every single category outside of three-point shooting. Simmons is available for $8.7k on FanDuel and has a projection of 41.88 points. Lillard is projected for 45.56 points at a salary of $9.1k.
Josh Richardson is a great fantasy value at a 6.27 points per $1k rating. His steal of a $5.1k salary is expected to net your fantasy team 31.99 points tonight. While not quite in the same range is Richardson, CJ McCollum also has a solid points per $1k rating. He is available for $6.7k and has a 34.35 points projection. He will also boost your three-point figures if you choose to pair him with Simmons in your lineup.
Bet on Matchup
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