Clippers at 76ers
The fortunes of the Philadelphia 76ers have risen quickly behind Joel Embiid, but the standout center won't be suited up for Tuesday's home game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Embiid will miss the next two contests due to left knee soreness, but an MRI exam ruled out any significant damage.
The 76ers are 8-1 in the last nine games in which Embiid has played but were handled easily by Atlanta on Saturday, losing 110-93 as the 7-footer sat out. "It's still about our defense, it's still about running, it's still about sharing the ball," Philadelphia coach Brett Brown told reporters in reference to not having Embiid. "I think you go with Jahlil (Okafor) and Nerlens (Noel), and challenge them in relation to rim protection and what Joel provides us. The group around them also has got to perform at a higher level when you don't have Joel." Los Angeles power forward Blake Griffin (knee) is expected to return after having arthroscopic surgery and missing 18 games. The Clippers went 10-8 without Griffin and received 27 points from guard Austin Rivers in Monday's 115-105 victory in Atlanta.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Prime Ticket (Los Angeles), CSN Philadelphia
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (30-16): Sharpshooting guard Jamal Crawford scored 19 points in the victory over the Hawks to end a streak of seven straight single-digit efforts. Crawford was a dismal 7-of-41 shooting over his previous four games before making 9-of-20 shots against Atlanta. "It feels more normal," Crawford told reporters. "At a certain point, it becomes kind of mental and you stop yourself because you're thinking too much. You're doing the same things and getting the same shots you've been taking your whole life."
ABOUT THE 76ERS (15-27): Okafor (knee) was a limited practice participant on Monday but is expected to play against the Clippers. "They were trying to make sure I could get back to being 100 percent because they knew that my knee was bothering me," Okafor told reporters. "They haven't really told me what the plan was. I was really focused on getting me back to being healthy." Okafor still is adjusting to being a backup due to Embiid's emergence but scored a season-best 26 points against Washington on Jan. 14, when Embiid was held out for rest.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Clippers have won nine straight meetings by an average of 21.9 points.
2. Rivers made five 3-pointers against Atlanta and is averaging 18.8 points over his last five games.
3. Philadelphia PF Ersan Ilyasova has topped 20 points in consecutive games and is averaging 18.6 over his last five contests.