Grizzlies at 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers are enjoying their first winning streak since March of 2015 with back-to-back wins and won four of the last seven games while morphing into a formidable opponent. The Memphis Grizzlies, who visit the 76ers on Wednesday, are formidable themselves and are winners of five straight since rediscovering their magic on the defensive end.
Philadelphia center Joel Embiid is the main reason for the newfound optimism surrounding the team, and he did his part with 22 points in a 101-94 home win over the Miami Heat on Monday, including making his free throws down the stretch. "I always like to think I'm clutch, so I made the free throws," Embiid told the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Grizzlies have a center that can challenge Embiid on the defensive end in Marc Gasol but are doing their best defensive work on the perimeter during the five-game winning streak. The duo of Tony Allen and Mike Conley at the guard spots held the Charlotte Hornets backcourt of Kemba Walker and Nicolas Batum to a combined 7-of-22 from the floor in a 105-90 triumph on Monday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Memphis), CSN Philadelphia
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (9-5): First-year coach David Fizdale committed to the idea of bringing veteran forward Zach Randolph off the bench and is being rewarded with 14.4 points and nine rebounds in 21.9 minutes. Randolph, 35, still finds his way onto the court when it matters most and recorded eight of his 14 points in the fourth quarter on Monday to pull his team out of a funk after a 26-point lead was reduced to single digits. "It’s just who we are," Fizdale told reporters. "Our group don’t cave. That’s one thing I like about them, we don’t cave in. If you’re going to beat us, you really have to earn it."
ABOUT THE 76ERS (4-10): Embiid is still playing under a minutes restriction after missing the previous two seasons due to multiple foot surgeries, but fellow center Jahlil Okafor (knee surgery) had his restriction lifted on Monday and logged a season-high 25 minutes while contributing 15 points. There is still no definitive date for when Nerlens Noel (knee surgery) will join Embiid and Okafor on the court, though he seems to think a return date is looming. "As of right now, I'm still feeling it out myself, probably around a couple of weeks," Noel told reporters. "I think I'm in a good place right now to start building back into game shape."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Grizzlies SF James Ennis (calf) left Monday's game and is day-to-day.
2. 76ers SF Robert Covington is averaging 5.4 points on 18.2 percent shooting in the last five games, including 3-of-27 from 3-point range.
3. Memphis took the last seven in the series, including four in a row in Philadelphia.