NBA Matchups: April 18

Toronto Raptors at Philadelphia 76ers

Team Totals: Raptors 104, 76ers 111.5

Injury Report: Scottie Barnes (Q, ankle), Gary Trent Jr. (Q, illness), Thaddeus Young (D, thumb), Jaden Springer (Q, knee)

Raptors projected starters: Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, Chris Boucher, Precious Achiuwa

76ers projected starters: James Harden, Tyrese Maxey, Danny Green, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid

Nurse quotes: Said the 76ers really did so many things right on offense, said they weren’t connected defensively in the first half, said he’s not expecting Trent Jr., Thaddeus Young, and Scottie Barnes to play, said they won’t have a chance if the refs will let Embiid run guys over.

Rivers quotes: Said they moved the ball well, said they were able to get in the paint a lot, said the Raptors are always aggressive with coverages and it can lead to some corner stuff, said they let Harden call his own plays, said they were leaning into the third options.

Stats and Notes: 

*The injuries to the Raptors are the headline here, and it’s a really bad spot for them with a lack of depth behind their core guys. On top of that, the 76ers were able to play one of their best games of the year with three turnovers, and they killed the Raptors in transition. The 76ers also killed the Raps in the halfcourt with a 122.1 O rating. The 76ers also really slowed down the pace at just 17.2 seconds per possession on offense.

*Fred VanVleet did get the Maxey matchup and was pretty solid with 18 points and six dimes, and FVV did get 21 first-half minutes. FVV does have better stats in minutes without Scottie and Trent Jr. with a 24/5/6 per-36 line in a 299-minute sample (204 with Siakam). It’s a pretty decent spot for him.