NBA Matchups: January 25

Philadelphia 76ers at Detroit Pistons

Team Totals: 76ers 112, Pistons 105.5

Injury Report: Joel Embiid (Q, back), Mike Scott (O, knee), Derrick Rose (O, knee)

76ers projected starters: Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Danny Green, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid

Pistons projected starters: Delon Wright, Wayne Ellington, Jerami Grant, Blake Griffin, Mason Plumlee

Rivers quotes: Said he liked Ben going to the line, said he loves how his team plays in rematches (played Pistons on Saturday), said he might pick his spots on when Ben guards the primary scorer, said Embiid doing a little more stretching pre-game is why he was questionable on Saturday, said Seth Curry is a terrific PNR player, said Mike Scott is “game to game” on availability.

Casey quotes: Said Pistons’ schedule has been very tough so far, said Plumlee is one of the best DHO options on O and that’ll keep Stewart’s minutes down a bit, said he might start to look to Blake to play more C.

Stats and Notes:
*Ben Simmons was a big factor on Jerami Grant on Saturday, keeping him to 3-of-19 from the field overall (0-of-2 when Ben guarded his shot). Ben continues to make it tough on whoever he guards with only two of the top 17 guys he’s guarded putting up 50+ FG% (Jaylen Brown, Duncan Robinson). Ben might not be on Grant as much with Blake back, but it’s still a really tough spot.
*It’s just too easy for Embiid right now after his 33/14/1 line on Saturday. He’s been a cheat code at the line with 17.7 attempts. His floor is as high as any player’s right now. There’s always concern he sits with a Q tag, but he should roast Mason Plumlee again as long as he’s active and this game stays relatively close.
*The Pistons put Grant on Ben and that certainly didn’t slow him down. Tobias Harris couldn’t take advantage of his matchup with Saddiq Bey, and he’ll probably see more Blake here. Blake’s been bad on O, but his defensive numbers have actually been pretty decent with the Pistons getting roasted by centers and PGs more than forwards.