NBA Matchups: January 15

Houston Rockets at Philadelphia 76ers (front end)

Team Totals: Rockets 109.5, 76ers 117

Injury Report: Joel Embiid (Q, knee), De’Anthony Melton (O, back), Robert Covington (O, knee)

Rockets projected starters: Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun

76ers projected starters: Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre, Tobias Harris, Nicolas Batum, Joel Embiid

Udoka quotes: Said they put Jabari Smith on multiple guys (Stewart, Thompson) and he showed his versatility, said they’re missing Tari and Brook a little but they have enough depth to fill in while they’re out, said they really buckled down in the fourth quarter, said Jeff Green went knee to knee, said Bullock was solid when they needed him, said they went to Bullock because some of the young guys were making mistakes.

Nurse quotes: Said Embiid is day-to-day and should practice “shortly”, said Embiid can play Monday or Tuesday (sounds unlikely).

Stats and Notes:

*Joel Embiid’s status is the whole story here. Embiid went through practice over the weekend, and Nurse mentioned he could play today or tomorrow against Nikola Jokic. You’d think he would want to play against Jokic, and he probably isn’t going to play in both games of the B2B. If Embiid is out, we’ve seen the 76ers get beat up inside, and no Melton should set up the perimeter players for better output. If Embiid’s in, it’s still a pretty good spot for Houston’s perimeter guys with more drop coverage leading to more shots off jumpers. For the Rockets, they are still the league’s best transition defense, and now they have Dillon Brooks back in the mix to make life tough on Tyrese Maxey.

Great matchups: Fred VanVleet, Alperen Sengun (if Embiid is out)

Good matchups: Jalen Green, Kelly Oubre

Bad matchups: Alperen Sengun (if Embiid is in), Tyrese Maxey

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New Orleans Pelicans at Dallas Mavericks

Team Totals: Pelicans 118.5, Mavs 115

Injury Report: Luka Doncic (D, ankle), Dereck Lively II (Q, ankle), Derrick Jones Jr. (D, calf), Zion Williamson (P, leg), Brandon Ingram (P, Achilles), Trey Murphy (P, knee), C.J. McCollum (P, ankle)

Pelicans projected starters: C.J. McCollum, Herb Jones, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, Jonas Valanciunas

Mavs projected starters: Kyrie Irving, Tim Hardaway Jr., Josh Green, Grant Williams, Dereck Lively II

Green quotes: Said Larry Nance played hard for them in the second unit, said Denver killed them in transition and with second-chance points, said they need to find better ways of getting BI the ball, said teams are blitzing BI more, said their depth was on display and it was impressive to arrive so late in Dallas and get the win, said Hawkins makes the right play and his play is “making [his] job extremely difficult”, said they use Nance on the ball and his defense has been effective for them.

Kidd quotes: Said Josh Green really set the tone against the Knicks, said they were trying to use Kyrie in the post more to save his energy and “he delivered” with that play, said they haven’t practiced since Dec. 20, said Hardy was great in transition because they wanted to play fast, said he liked how Maxi played in his return and he hit his 12-minute limit.

Stats and Notes: 

*The Pelicans continue their impressive run with excellent defense, ranking first in the last month. They’re arguably the best on-ball defense in the league, and they have been excellent around the rim lately. They pulled off an impressive win on Saturday with their main guys out, and we’ll see how they handle the injuries here. The Mavs not having Derrick Jones Jr. is a pretty big deal, as they lose one of their main defenders, so that should really help Brandon Ingram. C.J. McCollum should also have a great matchup against Kyrie Irving, who will have to deal with Herb Jones. Kyrie’s role is going to be massive, and he’s such a good 1-on-1 scorer that Herb may not matter.

Great matchups: Brandon Ingram, C.J. McCollum

Good matchups: Tim Hardaway Jr., Zion Williamson

Bad matchups: Kyrie Irving

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Detroit Pistons at Washington Wizards