Nets at 76ers
The Brooklyn Nets are trying to earn the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference - a spot that would likely get them a first-round date with the Philadelphia 76ers. The teams will showcase a preview of that potential series when the Nets visit the 76ers on Thursday.
Brooklyn had a chance to pull even at 3-3 on the West Coast portion of its seven-game road trip at Portland on Monday but fell 148-144 in double overtime in a game marred by a gruesome injury to Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic that occurred early in the second overtime period. "Once I saw his foot out in the wrong direction, it took a while to get me back into the flow of the game," Nets forward Jared Dudley told reporters. "Stuff like that is bigger than basketball. He played phenomenal. No one could really guard him or stop him." The 76ers have a center that no one can seem to stop in All-Star Joel Embiid, who delivered 20 points and 10 rebounds in 31 minutes on Monday for his 17th straight double-double but watched his team drop its second consecutive game with a 119-98 setback at Orlando. "We've got to get some wins, man," Philadelphia point guard T.J. McConnell told reporters. "We can't put that (bad) product out there. We just got to be better than that. It's simple as that. It was a putrid effort for a team fighting to be a three seed."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, YES (Brooklyn), NBCS Philadelphia
ABOUT THE NETS (38-37): Brooklyn is trying to fight off Detroit for the No. 6 spot while keeping an eye on Miami and Orlando close behind and is finally at the end of a rough stretch that saw it fall to four playoff teams from the Western Conference in the first six games of the trip. The Nets placed seven scorers in double figures at Portland, led by All-Star point guard D'Angelo Russell's 39 points, but fell just short. "I thought we battled with them, we were in the boxing ring with them," Brooklyn coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters. "We took a few punches but didn't go down, and I'm proud of our guys. I thought they tussled and fought with a big, strong team."
ABOUT THE 76ERS (47-27): Buried late in Monday's loss at Orlando was the NBA debut of No. 16 overall pick Zhaire Smith, who broke his foot in training camp and underwent surgery that kept him out the first five months of the season. The 19-year-old shooting guard knocked down his lone shot attempt - a 3-pointer - and recorded a rebound and a steal in six minutes. "We want him to continue to have the utmost confidence and know he is a part of this team, he is a pro, and we can't wait to have him up here full-time," starting guard Jimmy Butler told reporters of Smith. "Well, I think we have him now, so we are good."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Nets SF Joe Harris went 7-of-9 from 3-point range in wins at Sacramento and the Los Angeles Lakers before slumping to 1-of-6 in Monday's loss.
2. 76ers All-Star PG Ben Simmons (illness) sat out Monday and is day-to-day.
3. Brooklyn took two of the first three meetings, including a 127-124 win at Philadelphia on Dec. 12.