Thunder Gameday: Facing Rebuilt Sixers Post Trade Deadline

Following a huge splash at the trade deadline, the Philadelphia 76ers host the OKC Thunder on Friday night.

The Philadelphia 76ers made the largest splash at the trade deadline, acquiring James Harden from the Brooklyn Nets. This forms a new elite duo between him and Joel Embiid in Philadelphia that will be dangerous over the remainder of the season and into the playoffs.

In their first game following the deal, the Thunder will be in Philadelphia to take on the Sixers. It’s still unclear who exactly will be available to suit up for Philadelphia, but the Thunder will still be underdogs in this matchup.

ODDS: 

The Thunder enter the day as 12-point underdogs to the Sixers, and the total over/under is 210.5 points.

KEYS TO THE GAME: 

Embiid is having another MVP level season, producing 29.4 points, 10.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists per contest. Even without Ben Simmons in the lineup for the entire 2021-22 campaign, Embiid has led the Sixers to a top-five seed in the Eastern Conference.

He’ll likely have a monster night tonight against the undersized Thunder, who don’t have a true 7-foot big. As such, Embiid could put this game away himself.

Regardless, Philadelphia will look quite a bit different in this matchup. They just traded away several players, some of which were in the regular rotation. Due to this, the rotation tonight will be interesting against the Thunder.

Especially since they’re at home, the Sixers are a huge favorite against the Thunder. Unless their backcourt of Lu Dort and Josh Giddey have stellar performances, this game might not be particularly close.

RECORDS: 

Oklahoma City Thunder (17-37) vs. Philadelphia 76ers (32-22)

WHEN: 

Friday, February 11, 2022 at 6:00 PM CT

LOCATION: 

Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA

TV/RADIO: 

Bally Sports Oklahoma, NBA League Pass, 98.1 FM The Sports Animal

FINAL WORD: 

Despite having a quiet trade deadline, the Thunder did improve their draft stash and stuck true to being patient with the rebuild. The remainder of the season, Oklahoma City will look to continue developing individual talent.

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