NBA League Pass Spotlight: Sixers at Pacers

Sunday features a four-game slate on NBA League Pass highlighted by a matchup between two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference – the Philadelphia 76ers at the Indiana Pacers. Here are five things to watch when the game tips off at 7:00 p.m. ET on NBA League Pass.

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1. Joel Embiid Playing Like an MVP

The reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week is among the Kia MVP favorites as the 2020-21 season rounds the quarter pole. Embiid is one of just two players to rank in the top 10 in both scoring (4th) and rebounding (8th) this season; the other is two-time reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Appearing in 16 of Philly’s first 20 games, Embiid is averaging a career-high 28.3 points as well as 11.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.3 blocks. Here is the list of players that have averages those numbers or better for a season: Charles Barkley in 1987-88 and Bob McAdoo in 1975-76.

Embiid isn’t just averaging a career-best 28.3 ppg, he’s also scoring more efficiently than he has in any of his previous four seasons. Embiid is shooting career-best percentages from the field (54.4%), from three (40.4%) and the free throw line (84.0%). And as good as Embiid has been all season long, he has been on fire over his past five games, upping his scoring average to 35.6 ppg and shooting 56% from the field and 42.9% from three.

2. The Embiid vs. Turner Matchup

The key matchup to watch in this game will be between Joel Embiid and Myles Turner. Embiid is a top-five scorer in the league, who gets his points all over the court. He leads the NBA with 9.6 points per game on post-ups as he excels on the block and the high post. He can bully an opponent in the paint or face up and shoot a mid-range jumper over them. He gets out in transition and has extended range out to the 3-point line, where he’s shooting over 40%.

The task of defending Embiid, trying to slow him down and make him work for his points, and doing so without fouling is a gargantuan task. And one that the Pacers were unable to complete last season when Embiid averaged 36.5 ppg on 60.5% shooting and 16.0 rpg in two games against them.

In Turner, the Pacers have the league’s top shot blocker (4.1 bpg) and top rim protector (41.7% shooting allowed at the basket) so far this season. Can Turner replicate those numbers against Embiid, who got the better of Turner last season?

Turner was plagued with foul trouble in both matchups with Embiid in 2019-20; he finished with five fouls in 29 minutes in the first meeting (Turner 3 pts, 3 reb, 1-8 FG; Embiid 32 pts, 11 reb) and fouled out in 20 minutes in the second meeting (Turner 9 pts, 2 reb, 2 blk; Embiid 41 pts, 21 reb, 3 blk).

The head-to-head matchup data shows that Embiid scored 23 points in 9:06 of total matchup time against Turner over the two games. Embiid shot 6-11 from the field and drew six shooting fouls, which led to 11-12 shooting from the foul line.

3. Pacers Sharing the Rock

Keep an eye on the Pacers ball movement as they have been one of the top teams in creating shots for one another with the pass. The Pacers are tied for fourth in assists per game (26.8) and rank sixth in assist percentage as 62.9% of their baskets come off an assist. Indiana ranks third in the league in points created by assists (69.9 per game, which equals 61.7% of their total points).

There are two keys to the Pacers playmaking. First, despite ranking fourth in total passes made (304.8 per game), the Pacers only turn the ball over 12.7 times per game, which is tied for the fifth-lowest average in the league. Indiana’s 1.95 assist/turnover ratio is the second-highest in the league, trailing only San Antonio.

The second key is that they have multiple players dishing out assists as opposed to one player dominating the category. The Pacers are tied for fourth in assists per game, but their leader in assists – Malcolm Brogdon – ranks 9th among all players with his 7.2 apg. The Pacers are the only team with three players ranked in the top 25 in assists as Domantas Sabonis and TJ McConnell each average 5.8 assists per game.

4. Can Sixers Break Through Away from Philly?

At 10-1, the Sixers have the best home record of any team in the NBA; earlier this week they became the first team to hand the Lakers a road loss after they opened season with 10 straight road wins.

But the Sixers have been a different team on the road, where they are just 4-5 on the season. The Sixers are shooting five percentage points lower from the field (49.6% at home, 44.6% on road) and four percentage points lower from three (38.1% at home, 34.1% on road). The Sixers’ assists drop by 6.5 per game, their free throw attempts drop by 2.6 per game, and their steals drop by 2.2 per game when they play away from Philadelphia.

This was a similar theme from the Sixers last season before the league relocated to the Orlando campus for the restart. In the first 65 games of the season, the Sixers were a league-best 29-2 at home and just 10-24 on the road.

The Sixers enter Sunday with the top record in the Eastern Conference and have aspirations of a deep playoff run and their first trip to the Finals in 20 years. In order to get there, the Sixers will have to improve on the road.

5. Who Delivers with Game on the Line?

Three of the four matchups between the Sixers and Pacers last season were decided by six points or fewer. If the past is any indicator, we may be in store for a close game on Sunday, which begs the question of which teams and players will deliver in the clutch.

So far this season, the Sixers are an NBA-best 8-1 in games with clutch time – score within five points in the final five minutes – outscoring their opponents by 29 points over 37 clutch minutes. The Sixers haven’t shot particularly well in the clutch, but their defense has been great with 12 blocks, 9 steals and an 86.6 defensive rating.

The Pacers have gone 6-5 in clutch games this season; they have been outscored by a total of three points in 52 clutch minutes, which are the fourth-most clutch minutes of any team in the league. Malcolm Brogdon has been the Pacers’ leading scorer in clutch situations with 28 points on 37.0% shooting from the field, 40% from three and has also dished out 11 assists while playing all 52 clutch minutes.

Embiid has been the leading scorer for Philly in clutch moments; he has 36 points on 45.5% shooting from the field, as well as four of Philly’s dozen blocks in 26 clutch minutes.