Two rivals clash in a meeting of Eastern Conference top guns. If previous matchups are an indication, this should feature another good back-and-forth. 

Catch the game tomorrow at  8:00 AM, Manila time.

HOME: Philadelphia 76ers (5-1, 4-0 HOME)

Projected starting five:

  • Tyrese Maxey
  • De’Anthony Melton
  • Kelly Oubre Jr.
  • Tobias Harris
  • Joel Embiid

The Sixers are coming off an offensively charged game. They enjoyed pouring it on the Washington Wizards’ hapless defense, 146-28, en route to gaining their fifth-straight victory. Reigning MVP Joel Embiid was virtually unstoppable, scoring 48 points on 17-of-25 shooting. 

Embiid is maintaining his barrage from last season as he is now averaging 32.5 points per game, but the good news is he has been getting quite the help from their rising guard. Tyrese Maxey is at 25.5 PPG through six games, and showed some facilitating abilities in the past game, posting a double-double of 22 points and 11 assists with no turnovers.

Forwards Tobias Harris (19.7 PPG) and new Sixer Kelly Oubre (18.0 PPG) Jr. are backing the two nicely as they are having a solid start themselves. Tomorrow should be a good test as to how solid they really are.

The Sixers are fourth in scoring at 121.5 PPG, and currently own a +13.1 net rating.

Advertisement

AWAY: Boston Celtics (5-1, 3-1 AWAY)

Projected starting five:

  • Jrue Holiday
  • Derrick White
  • Jaylen Brown
  • Jayson Tatum
  • Kristaps Porzingis

The Celtics got their five-game winning streak to start the season snapped by the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday, 114-109, as they simply couldn’t stop Anthony Edwards. Tomorrow’s contest will be an early preview of how they respond from such a loss.

There’s little worry in the Celtics locker room, obviously, since the group remains as one of the most talented teams in the league. The Jayson Tatum (30.2 PPG) and Jaylen Brown (23.2 PPG) tandem are still young, hungry, and intact, and new additions Kristaps Porzingis (19.5 PPG, 1.7 BPG) and Jrue Holiday (13.7 PPG, 5.3 APG) are a nice mix to what they offer. The fifth guy, Derrick White, is pretty good, two-way guard too. It’s one of the rare complete fives across the NBA, wherein offensive and defensive prowess are equally present at a high level.

Boston is second in scoring at 123.5 PPG, and first in net rating, courtesy of a whopping +14.2 gap. This team is a force and has been flexing it on both ends.

PREDICTION:

Handicap: The Celtics (-1.5) go back on the win column.

Over/Under: The total goes over 226.

Advertisement