The Philadelphia 76ers still have the opportunity to improve their playoff position with only nine games remaining in the regular season.
The Sixers fell 108-107 to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, and the frustration bubbled over as coach Nick Nurse and guard Kelly Oubre Jr. angrily yelled at the referees after the loss. Oubre appeared to be fouled on a final shot but nothing was called.
Philadelphia (39-34), which sits in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, will battle the host Cleveland Cavaliers (44-29) on Friday.
Against Los Angeles, Tyrese Maxey led the Sixers with 26 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Oubre added 17 points and 11 rebounds. Buddy Hield scored 17 points, Tobias Harris added 14 and Mo Bamba had 12 points, 11 rebounds and two blocked shots.
But the Sixers continued to falter without reigning Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid, who had lateral meniscus surgery on Feb. 6.
The top six seeds in each conference avoid the play-in games.
Nurse said that Embiid could return before the end of the regular season. An exact timeline, however, hasn’t been determined.
Despite the crushing loss to the Clippers, the Sixers played solid defense, especially down the stretch. Kawhi Leonard converted two very difficult three-point plays in the final minute through some stifling defense.
The Cavaliers will enter this matchup having dropped four of five.
Cleveland was surprisingly beaten by the Charlotte Hornets, 118-111, on Wednesday.
Even without an injured Donovan Mitchell, the Cavaliers placed six players in double figures led by Jarrett Allen’s 24 points, Max Strus’ 19 and Sam Merrill’s 17. Darius Garland had 14 points and 12 assists, Georges Niang scored 14 points and Evan Mobley had 10.
The Cavaliers had trouble executing when the game was up for grabs in the fourth quarter.
This lack of offensive execution has been an issue in recent losses.
The good news for the Cavaliers is this: reports have indicated that Mitchell could return to face the Sixers. Mitchell struggled with a bone bruise on his knee earlier this season and most recently a nasal fracture.
Mitchell has been out since March 16.
In 49 games, Mitchell is averaging 27.4 points, 6.1 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game.
