Cavaliers at 76ers
The arrival of Jimmy Butler dominated headlines of late but the Philadelphia 76ers are aware of who the MVP of the team - and maybe the league - is through the first 20 games. Star center Joel Embiid will try to continue boosting his MVP credentials by leading the 76ers to a fifth straight win when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.
Embiid recorded his 12th outing of at least 30 points and 10 rebounds with 31 and 19 on Wednesday as Philadelphia slipped past the New Orleans Pelicans 121-120. "I was getting the ball a lot and I was doing my job, and that's dominating," Embiid, who was showered with M-V-P chants by the home crowd, told reporters. The Cavaliers no longer have a dominating player on which to anchor their playoff hopes and had to watch former hometown hero LeBron James score 32 points for the Los Angeles Lakers in a 109-105 loss on Wednesday that dropped their league-worst record to 2-14. The lone starter remaining from the team that James led to the NBA Finals in each of the previous four seasons, center Tristan Thompson, collected 14 points and 15 rebounds in the setback.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FS Ohio (Cleveland), NBCS Philadelphia
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (2-14): Cleveland is firmly in rebuilding mode and at least is getting some encouraging performances from younger players. Small forward Cedi Osman, 23, scored a team-high 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting in 42 minutes on Wednesday and was happy with his team's effort. "It was a great game," Osman told reporters. "It was a great game for everybody. We competed really hard. We just have to go out every game and do the same thing we did tonight. There were, of course, some bad moments that we had, but mostly it was good. Everybody competed hard and we did our best to win tonight."
ABOUT THE 76ERS (13-7): Philadelphia is an NBA-best 10-0 in its own arena and can feel the momentum when competing in front of the home fans. "I think just knowing we've played well here, and giving home fans what they want, for us to play hard every game coming in here and competing," point guard Ben Simmons told reporters. "There’s a priority to that where we want to win. We don't want to let anybody down here." Embiid averages 30.8 points at home while posting 25.4 on the road.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Cavaliers SG JR Smith is away from the team as it tries to work out a trade for the disgruntled veteran.
2. 76ers PG Markelle Fultz (shoulder) is not expected to play this weekend.
3. The teams split four meetings last season, with Philadelphia taking the last two.