The Philadelphia 76ers are again facing a challenge as they head to Toronto on Friday night, attempting to win without their All-Stars, Joel Embiid and Paul George. Missing both players on Wednesday led to a 124-109 loss at home to the Milwaukee Bucks in their season opener.
Toronto also struggled in their opener, losing 136-106 to the Cleveland Cavaliers, missing key players. They hope to have some back in action as they welcome their former head coach, Nick Nurse, now with Philadelphia.
The 76ers will be without George (left knee bone bruise) against Toronto, and Embiid (left knee injury management) is out for the Toronto game and Sunday’s matchup against Indiana. George might return against the Pacers. Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 25 points against Milwaukee, but his shooting wasn’t great, going 10-for-31 from the field and 2-for-9 on 3-pointers. Kelly Oubre Jr. added 21 points, and Andre Drummond had 10 points and 13 rebounds, while Caleb Martin contributed 12 points and nine rebounds off the bench. The team shot 41.8% from the field and 25.8% from beyond the arc.
The Raptors were missing RJ Barrett (shoulder), Bruce Brown (knee), Kelly Olynyk (back), and Ja’Kobe Walter (shoulder) in their opener. They also lost Immanuel Quickley to a right pelvic contusion in the second half after he scored 13 points and had four assists. Quickley and Olynyk didn’t practice on Thursday, but Barrett did return to practice.
Scottie Barnes had a below-Par performance for Toronto with nine points, six rebounds, and five assists. The Raptors shot 41.8% from the field and 38.7% from 3-point range. Reserve Chris Boucher led with 18 points, and Gradey Dick added 16 points. Toronto was heavily outscored in the paint, 68-38. Last season, Philadelphia was 4-0 against Toronto.
