Nikola Jokic had one of his league-leading 41 double-doubles (15 points, 12 assists) in Denver’s win over Philadelphia on Jan. 9.
Sixers (32-14) at Nuggets (28-18)
9 p.m. ET, NBA TV
• This is a matchup of the league’s third-ranked offense in Denver (117.0 points per 100 possessions) against the league’s second-ranked defense in Philadelphia (107.1 points allowed per 100 possessions). The Nuggets have the fifth-highest effective field goal percentage in the league at 56.3%, while the Sixers hold teams to the third-lowest percentage at 51.8%.
• Aaron Gordon made an immediate impact after being acquired by the Nuggets at the trade deadline. In his debut game on Sunday against Atlanta, Gordon got the start and finished with 13 points on 6-9 shooting and grabbed a pair of rebounds in 21 minutes. Three of his buckets were off assists by Nikola Jokic, who had a game-high eight dimes in the win.
• This matchup features three of the top 10 players in steals per game, led by Denver’s Nikola Jokic at 1.6 per game (6th in NBA) and followed by the Philadelphia duo of Matisse Thybulle (9th) and Ben Simmons (10th) at 1.5 per game. The Nuggets (18.3 ppg) and Sixers (17.9 ppg) rank seventh and ninth, respectively, in points off turnovers this season.
• The Sixers have gone 6-2 since losing Joel Embiid to a leg injury on March 12 against Washington. During that stretch, Tobias Harris has averaged 24.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.4 steals in a team-high 35.7 minutes per game. While the team’s scoring has decreased from 115.3 ppg prior to Embiid’s injury to 112.1 over the past eight games, the Sixers’ point differential has climbed from plus-4.6 to plus-8.4.
• Philadelphia ranks second in the league in fast break points at 15.7 ppg. The Sixers are led by Ben Simmons (3.7, 4th in NBA) and Tobias Harris (11th in NBA) – the highest-ranking teammates in the league.
