The

Lakers

already

are

a

problem.

LeBron

in

charge.

LBJ,

What

a

pass!

James

throws

it

up,

Davis

throws

it

down.

Philadelphia's

winning,

and

they're

doing

it

behind

Joel

Embiid.

Embiid.

Gorgeous

move

and

finish.

He

looks

like

he's

in

the

best

shape

of

his

life.

This

dude

is

a

monster.

I

do

this

religiously,

and

I

don't

trust

fools

in

this

industry.

Glad

I

came

through

on

the

winning

streak.

LeBron

is

here

for

one

thing,

and

that's

championships.

As

long

as

we

don't

worry

about

what

we

did

last

year,

we

need

to

worry

about

what

we're

going

to

do

this

year.

We're

not

satisfied

with

just

winning

one

title.

Everybody

by

now

should

know

that

I

will

do

what

it

takes

to

win.

This

year

is

all

about

being

the

best

player

in

the

league.

Welcome

to

NBA

Wednesday.

Lakers

and

Sixers

from

Philadelphia,

as

the

Lakers

came

in

with

the

best

road

record.

Schroeder,

Caldwell,

Polk,

LeBron

James,

Anthony

Davis,

and

Marc

Gasol.

The

usual

starting

five

for

Frank

Vogel.

And

for

Philadelphia,

they've

got

their

usual

starting

five

intact

as

well.

LeBron

James

and

the

Lakers

are

on

their

longest

road

trip,

you

see

they

have

not

had

any

problems

on

the

road.

against

a

team

with

the

best

home

record

in

the

NBA,

despite...

No

fans.

Philadelphia

is

still

dominant

here

at

the

Wells

Fargo

Center.

James

and

the

Lakers

are

so

far

on

this

seven-game

trip.

It's

their

longest

of

the

season

as

Schroeder

drives

inside.

Schroeder's

first

shot

misses

and

Ben

Simmons

gets

the

rebound.

Simmons

goes

right

at

James,

right-handed,

backs

it

home.

And

Doris,

Are

you

surprised

how

quickly

it's

come

together

for

the

Lakers

considering

again

that

quick

turnaround?

Yes,

Mike,

I

am

for

a

couple

of

reasons.

I

thought

LeBron

James

might

have

missed

a

game

by

now

as

you

see

the

addition

of

Marc

Gasol

and

what

he

provides;

he

can

pick

and

pop,

he

doesn't

take

a

ton

of

shots

but

he's

exceptional

as

a

passer,

but

you're

trying

to

fit

in

Dennis

Schroeder,

Wes

Matthews

Who's

in

a

new

role?

Yes,

I

am

stunned

at

how

quickly

it's

come

together.

Ben

Simmons

stuns

the

Laker

defense

with

a

quick

move,

and

Simmons

is

very

aggressive

on

the

first

couple

of

possessions

to

give

Philly

the

lead

again.

Mike,

To

me,

That's

a

key

because

he

is

at

a

career

low

in

field-goal

attempts

per

game.

I

don't

think

he's

been

anywhere

near

as

aggressive

or

assertive

as

a

scorer

as

he

needs

to

be.

Gasol

kicks

it

out

to

Schroder.

Hunter,

by

Danny

Green.

Who

helped

the

Lakers

win

the

title

last

year.

Of

course,

Danny

Green

and

Dwight

Howard

both

with

Philadelphia,

as

Gasol

is

off

the

mark.

Tobias

Harris

pushes.

You've

got

two

teams

that

are

so

good

at

both

ends

of

the

floor.

Seth

Curry

spins.

Two

teams

that

are

still

incorporating

new

players.

And

it's

Danny

Green

with

his

first

jumper.

A

three-pointer

is

good.

Boy,

Danny

Green's

first

five

games

in

a

Sixers

uniform

were

really

rocky

shooting

the

ball.

But

since

January

he

is

north

of

He's

just

flat

shooting

it

right

now.

Nice

feed

inside.

Davis'

shot

is

blocked.

But

they

call

a

goaltend.

Well,

We've

talked

so

much

about

Joel

Embiid

and

the

season

he's

off

to,

But

to

watch

Ben

Simmons

get

downhill,

push

the

pace,

is

exactly

what

you

hope.

And

too

often

this

year

for

me,

Mike,

he's

looked

to

pass.

Now,

in

that

instance,

He

got

downhill,

Nobody

in

front

of

him.

I

hope

he

maintains

that

level

of

aggression

all

night.

We've

seen

some

signs

of

it

recently.

He

had

that

great

game

last

week,

the

fourth

quarter,

against

the

Boston

Celtics

here

in

Philadelphia.

And

then

the

first

game

in

Detroit

on

Saturday,

He

had

a

game.

Still

playing

his

great

defense,

still

distributing

as

well

as

most

of

the

NBA.

As

Harris

drives

in,

Shot

won't

go,

Rebound,

LeBron

James.

But

Marc

Gasol

is

not

taking

a

ton

of

shots,

But

the

fundamentally

sound

defense,

the

passing

ability,

Just

back-to-back

possessions

where

the

value

of

Marc

Gasol

is

in

complete

command

right

there.

And

right

now,

Ben

Simmons

is

in

complete

command

on

the

offensive

end.

Simmons

already

has

six

points.

Well,

I

think

if

you're

the

Lakers,

you've

got

to

stop

the

ball

at

the

point

of

attack.

To

allow

a

guy

at

with

that

kind

of

speed

and

downhill

ability

to

get

a

head

of

steam

is

just

silly.

James

goes

backdoor

again.

Fires

it

in.

Gasol,

with

some

sweet

passing,

has

been

that

way

throughout

his

career.

One

of

the

best

passing

big

men

in

the

game.

As

Harris

misfires.

Davis

releases

down

the

other

end,

and

Harris

grabs

him

to

prevent

the

shot.

I

shouldn't

be

surprised;

you're

talking

about

a

bunch

of

pros.

including

the

consummate

pro,

Marc

Gasol.

Just

square

up.

Point

of

attack.

You

lift

the

defense,

And

then

how

about

this?

Just

stay

vertical,

Make

it

very

tough

for

Tobias

Harris

to

shoot

over

you.

Just

excellent,

Fundamental

defense

right

there.

Marc

Gasol

is

only

playing

minutes

a

game,

but

he's

started

every

game.

He's

played

every

game,

and

does

whatever's

needed

on

a

given

night,

obviously

he

doesn't

have

to

score,

certainly

like

he

did

in

Toronto,

and

certainly

not

in

Memphis.

As

Davis

goes

to

the

line

for

two

free

throws,

the

foul

was

on

Tobias

Harris.

I

know

we're

a

quarter

of

the

way

into

the

season,

but

it

kind

of

gives

them

an

idea

where

they're

at.

No

question.

You're

always

looking

to

test

yourself

against

the

best.

And

right

now

the

Lakers

very

much

look

like

the

lead

among

the

contending

teams.

Embiid,

matched

up

against

Gasol.

Gasol

has

had

some

very

good

games

against

Joel

Embiid,

as

Embiid

hits

that.

And

I

don't

necessarily

mean

scoring.

And

that

game,

when

he

was

with

Toronto,

Embiid

played

minutes,

and

didn't

score

a

point.

He

was

for

from

the

field.

A

lot

of

that

had

to

do

with

Marc

Gasol

and

Caldwell

Culp.

He's

fouled.

The

shot

won't

count.

If

you

look

at

the

guys

who've

traditionally

done

a

good

individual

defensive

job

against

Joel

Embiid,

Marc

Gasol

keeps

him

to

one

of

the

lowest

field

goal

percentages

in

any

individual

matchup.

So

it'd

be

interesting

to

see,

Do

they

guard

him

one-on-one?

Well,

He

doesn't

have

to

shoot.

He

just

has

to

throw

these

beautiful

passes.

Already

three

assists

for

Gasol.

And

they're

not

easy

passes.

Embiid,

one-on-one.

There

comes

Schroeder

with

the

double

team.

And

Embiid

rushed

a

little

bit.

Let's

just

watch

Marc

Gasol's

passing

display

through

the

first

couple

of

minutes

of

this

game.

The

spacing

is

incredible.

LeBron

James

just

backdoors

his

defender.

Ben

Simmons,

You're

throwing

your

best

perimeter

defender

at

LeBron.

He

leaves

him

in

the

dust.

And

the

Lakers'

spacing

right

now

is

incredible.

Gasol,

his

career

high

in

assists

when

you're

just

under

Five

a

game.

Great

number

for

a

center.

It

was

Anthony

Davis.

A

little

jump

hook

makes

it

look

easy.

And

this

is

the

thing.

Mike.

Anthony

Davis

is

not

pleased

with

the

level

of

play.

His

numbers

are

down.

So

they're

where

they

are,

and

he's

not

in

a

groove

yet.

Anthony

Davis.

Meanwhile.

Tobias

Harris

has

been

in

a

groove

offensively

most

of

the

season.

Philadelphia

back

within

one

Harris.

Harris

is

the

second

leading

scorer

after

Joel

Embiid.

A

nice,

consistent

force

for

Doc

Rivers.

Davis

takes

several

jab

steps.

Jumper

won't

go.

Harris

with

the

rebound.

Sixers

have

hit

six

of

their

first

eight

from

the

field.

They're

getting

good

balance

here

in

the

opening

minutes.

Embiid

wants

it

again.

Embiid

has

been

as

good

as

anybody

at

drawing

fouls.

That

shot

was

short.

Ben

Simmons

tried

to

keep

it

alive.

And

a

whistle

and

a

foul.

It's

going

to

go

against

the

Lakers.

This

is

one

thing

Ben

Simmons

consistently

does.

He

puts

pressure

on

you

and

your

ability

to

box

him

out.

At

he's

floating

at

the

baseline

or

trying

to

attack

the

backboard

at

to

feet.

And

that's

where

Anthony

picks

up

the

foul.

So

Davis

with

his

first

personal.

Decent

pace

to

this

one

early

on.

Tobias

Harris

is

able

to

connect.

Harris

now

with

five

points.

He

has

been

shooting

so

efficiently

all

season

long.

Averaging

a

little

over

a

game,

actually

closer

to

shooting

percent

from

the

field

and

from

downtown.

James

to

Davis

and

easy

buckets

for

the

Lakers

a

lot

of

layups

and

dunks.

You

mentioned

it.

I

mean,

these

are

two

teams

Lakers

number

one

in

defensive

efficiency,

Sixers

fourth;

we

have

to

see

the

defense

dig

in

against

LeBron

James.

Year

LeBron

James

on

the

move;

we

can

debate

all

night

what

his

best

attribute

is.

His

passing

is

pretty

good.

Mike.

Hard

to

say

anybody's

had

more

of

an

impact

on

There's

more

to

his

team's

winning

and

losing

than

Joel

Embiid.

The

key

for

the

Sixers

this

year

is

to

keep

him

healthy

and

keep

feeding

him

the

ball,

and

you

can

see

by

those

numbers

that

without

him

they

have

certainly

struggled;

with

him

they've

been

dominant

at

times.

Mike,

he's

in

the

MVP

conversation

for

a

reason

he's

in

the

best

condition

of

his

career.

Now

can

he

stay

healthy

and

sustain

it?

Because

Doc

Rivers

has

said,

listen,

it

comes

down

to

two

things.

You

guard

them

one-on-one,

We're

going

to

score.

You

double

them,

The

mindset

has

to

be,

we're

going

to

score.

Right

there,

one-on-one,

I'm

going

after

it,

and

he

gets

the

and-one.

This

is

beautiful

basketball.

And

remember,

He's

having

a

little

word

with

Marc

Gasol.

Marc

traditionally

has

done

an

exceptional

job

as

the

closest

defender.

But

look

at

the

strength.

I

mean,

These

are

two

big,

strong,

physical

guys,

and

he

just

goes

right

through

the

contact.

Marc

Gasol

just

got

a

technical

foul

as

well.

In

addition

to

the

personal

foul,

now

wanting

an

explanation.

Mitchell

Ervin,

the

official,

talking

to

him

right

now.

And

he's

shooting

from

the

free

throw

line.

And

that

is

huge

for

him

and

for

the

Sixers

because

he's

getting

to

the

line

almost

times

per

game,

which

is

number

one

in

the

NBA.

He's

getting

the

most

post-ups.

He

is

producing

nine

points

per

game

out

of

the

post,

either

scoring

himself

or

off

passes.

And

consider,

Mike,

off

those

doubles,

that

doesn't

count

the

times

the

ball

goes

swing,

swing.

So

he

doesn't

get

an

assist,

but

he's

responsible

for

it.

A

delay

of

game

now

is

going

to

be

called

against

the

Lakers.

It's

called

against

LeBron

James.

David

Guthrie

already

kind

of

fed

up

with

something

with

the

Lakers.

You

want

Marcus

on

this.

He's

talked

to

Embiid

and

made

him

laugh.

He's

talked

to

Ben

Simmons

and

made

him

laugh.

But

he

didn't

make

the

officials

laugh.

That's

the

most

important

one.

Mike.

So

Philadelphia

up

by

three

for

the

Sixers.

Five

points

early

going

for

Joel

Embiid.

Embiid

guarded

by

Tobias

Harris.

Danny

Green

now

has

Davis

on

him.

He

goes

quickly

inside

and

yet

draws

another

foul.

So

with

the

technical

and

the

foul

on

Marc

Gasol,

You've

got

to

make

the

switch

defensively.

And

again,

no

double-team.

So

his

mindset

is,

all

right,

You're

not

sending

that

extra

defender.

I'm

going,

even

though

it's

Anthony

Davis,

I'm

going

right

at

him.

But

that's

now

two

on

Anthony

Davis

and

more

free

throws

for

Embiid.

It's

a

long

season,

Mike,

and

there's

something

so

appealing

about

Embiid's

personality

to

me.

LeBron

James

way

downtown.

And

Embiid

grabs

the

rebound.

Sixers,

eight

of

from

the

field

to

start.

Already

scored

points

midway

through

the

first.

Embiid,

the

soft

touch,

and

gets

the

roll.

He's

got

nine

points

already.

And

this

is

no

surprise,

folks.

This

is

a

guy

who's

a

three-level

scorer.

Despite

the

fact

that

he's

seven-foot,

pounds,

it's

a

feathery

soft

touch

from

the

mid-range.

James

right

back

to

Gasol.

They

want

to

take

advantage

of

Marc

Gasol's

height.

Tobias

Harris

fouls

him

there.

That's

gonna

be

a

difficult

matchup

for

Tobias;

Marc

will

be

more

aggressive

than

he

typically

is.

But

he

shows

mid-range

and

threes,

You

know,

like

he's

a

guard.

It's

just

been

fun

to

watch

him

be

able

to

play

again.

You

mentioned

it

earlier

he's

in

such

good

shape

that

he's

consistent

every

night

throughout

the

game.

Thybulle

comes

in

and

Tobias

Harris

will

sit

down.

Harris

picked

up

his

second

foul

there.

What

does

our

colleague

Jeff

Van

Gundy

always

say?

The

best

availability

is

availability,

right?

Or

whatever

his

expression

is.

I

mean,

Embiid

has

missed

a

ton

of

games.

It's

never

been

about

his

skill

set;

it's

whether

he

can

stay

healthy

and

on

the

floor.

Nice

steal

there

from

Seth

Curry.

Embiid

once

again

with

the

steal

on.

Now

Davis

has

two.

Pokes

it

away.

Caldwell

Pope.

Nope.

Ball

touched

the

baseline.

What's

the

expression

about

availability?

You

know

what

I'm

talking

about.

I

do,

but

I

can't

think

of

the

expression.

We'll

come

up

with

it

by

mid-third

quarter,

I

would

say.

Or

we'll

text

our

colleague.

Shot

clock

at

Now

Kuzma's

come

on

for

L.A.

Seth

Curry,

the

jumper.

And

Davis,

the

rebound.

Lakers

coming

off

that

victory

on

Monday

in

Cleveland

against

the

Cavaliers.

The

game

for

LeBron

James.

Schroeder,

and

a

loose

ball

foul

is

going

to

go

against

Philadelphia.

It

appears

to

be,

I

think

it's

going

to

be

Seth

Curry

grabbing

Gasol's

arm.

Now

there's

a

teammate.

Yes.

Wes

Matthews

has

come

into

the

game.

Wes

Matthews

and

Montrezl

Harrell

have

come

in;

four

new

Lakers

will

play

various

roles

Danny

Green

pokes

it

away,

the

shot

clock

winds

down,

the

shooter

has

to

throw

it

up

and

misses

resulting

in

a

violation,

and

you

know

we

talked

so

much

about

the

scoring

exploits

of

Joel

Embiid,

LeBron

James

and

Anthony

Davis,

but

both

coaches

will

tell

you

the

key

to

their

teams'

success

is

defense

and

they

both

can

be

great

defensive

teams,

and

a

player

comes

in

and

quickly

fouls

Joel

Embiid.

He's

already

taken

four

free

throws,

and

he's

going

to

go

back

to

the

line

for

more.

Timeout

called

by

L.A.

Just

under

four

and

a

half

remaining.

First

quarter

here

in

Philadelphia,

Lakers

and

the

Sixers.

Schroeder,

Davis,

Wes

Matthews,

and

Montrez

Harrell

out

there

for

the

Lakers.

Davis,

hard

drive,

bounce

is

good,

and

drops

through

for

Anthony

Davis.

He's

got

seven

early

points.

Curry

walks

in

with

a

three-pointer.

Rebound

taken,

Embiid

back

up

and

in.

Another

strong

start

for

Joel

Embiid.

The

lead

for

Philadelphia

is

nine.

Schroeder

had

it

poked

away

by

Danny

Green.

Anthony

Davis

has

talked

about

being

displeased

with

his

level.

This

time

he's

going

up

against

Ben

Simmons.

An

all-NBA-level

defender.

And

again,

another

guy

with

size

and

face-up

ability,

But

there,

Joel,

opportunistic

on

the

putback.

Davis

kind

of

just

grabbing

his

knee,

He

winced

a

little

bit

before.

He's

played

of

the

games.

He's

still

wincing

out

there

right

now,

as

you

see

him

on

the

far

left

of

the

screen.

A

nice

addition,

the

former

Clipper.

Inside

shot

won't

go;

kept

alive

by

Matthews,

but

it

went

out

of

bounds;

Sixers

get

it

back.

Anthony

Davis

just

keeps

reaching

down

toward

that

right

knee.

No

move

from

Frank

Vogel

to

take

him

out.

By

the

way,

these

Laker

jerseys

are

from

the

But

you

love

the

traditional

old

jerseys.

I

love

these,

Mike.

Great

job

by

Harrell

to

poke

that

ball

out

of

the

hands.

Davis

saves

it

but

not

to

a

teammate.

That's

a

foul

by

Montrezl

Harrell.

Keep

a

close

eye

on

him.

Seems

to

be

okay.

Brown

James

set

the

check

back

in.

So

two

fouls

on

Harrell

and

two

fouls

on

Anthony

Davis.

Officials

are

going

to

check

if

it

was

perhaps

a

clear

path.

David

Guthrie.

The

crew

chief,

will

take

a

look.

Good

hustle.

Good

save.

But

Thybulle

has

it,

I

don't

think.

The

key

is

the

shoulders.

Is

Harrell's

shoulder

ahead

of

Fievel?

His

knee

might

be

bothering

him.

But

it

didn't

affect

him;

terrific

hustle

there.

After

replay

review,

the

play

is

ruled

a

common

foul.

I

got

one

right.

That

doesn't

happen

very

often.

So

just

a

common

foul.

I'm

exceptional

on

the

second

and

third

replays.

In

slow-mo.

Meanwhile,

they

are

in

the

penalty.

So

it's

going

to

be

two

shots

anyway.

But

the

clear

path

is

two

shots

and

possession.

So

Thybulle

will

go

to

the

line.

Thybulle

last

year,

when

he

came

in

as

a

rookie,

he

was

so

advanced

defensively.

And

still

is

still

a

terrific

defender.

He's

got

great

instincts.

Quick

hands.

We'd

like

to

see

him

get

a

little

more

consistent

with

his

shooting,

but

what

a

talented

defensive

player.

Now

it's

really,

Mike,

about

whether

he

can

make

open

shots,

because

he's

exactly

the

kind

of

defender

you

hope

to

have

in

a

playoff

series.

I

mean,

you

have

two

elite

defensive

pieces

in

Ben

Simmons

and

Joel

Embiid.

Now

imagine

if

this

guy

could

consistently

make

open

shots,

because

he's

going

to

get

those

looks,

Mike.

A

early

as

we

approach

three

minutes

remaining.

They

have

points

in

just

nine

minutes,

shooting

from

the

field.

James

kicks

it

out

to

Matthews.

Matthews

for

three.

Kuzma,

good

hustle

play.

Kuzma

had

a

bunch

of

offensive

rebounds

in

their

last

game;

Spins

gets

inside,

shot

won't

go,

gets

another

offensive

rebound,

back

out

to

Matthews.

Matthews

finds

Marquis

Morris,

who

comes

up

short;

knocked

out

of

bounds

Sixers

ball.

You

know,

I

love

Kyle

Kuzma's

attitude

this

year,

Doris;

he's

averaging

a

career-low

points

per

game.

But

he

says,

"You

know

what,

my

scoring

opportunities

are

scarce."

I'm

just

gonna

try

to

make

plays

to

impact

winning.

And

hustle

plays

like

those

offensive

boards.

I'd

trade

that

for

a

championship.

Wouldn't

you?

Mike?

Yep.

Korkmaz

for

three.

Furkan

Korkmaz.

He

missed

games

with

a

groin

injury.

He

recently

returned

a

few

games

ago.

That

puts

the

Sixers

up

by

I

think

this

is

one

key

for

the

Sixers.

Seth

has

been

a

huge

boost

in

terms

of

his

three-point

spacing

as

LeBron

gets

in.

Easy

look

and

rejected

by

Joel.

Great

defensive

play

from

Embiid.

Danny

Green

for

three.

The

Sixers

are

rolling

here

in

the

first

quarter.

Timeout.

A

lead.

They're

shooting

from

the

floor.

Doris,

He

scores

a

lot,

He's

a

great

defensive

player.

Engaged.

He's

as

good

a

rim

protector

as

you

have

in

the

league.

And

two

things

have

happened

here

for

the

Sixers.

Joel

has

drawn

any

number

of

fouls;

you're

also

now

playing

off

your

defense,

getting

into

the

pace

you

want

to

play

with.

If

only

there

were

fans

we

can't

stand

up

and

give

you

an

ovation

right

there.

The

people

in

the

arena

tonight

have

been

up

and

cheering

wildly

for

Joel

Embiid,

who

is

taking

his

usual

spot

behind

the

basket;

that's

an

additional

space

just

to

the

side

of

the

regular

bench,

and

because

they're

over

there

they

don't

have

to

wear

masks.

Embiid

says

he

has

trouble

coming

off

the

court

wearing

the

mask,

so

he

likes

to

sit

in

that

spot.

James'

fake

layup

is

good

and

the

foul

a

chance

for

a

three-point

play.

There's

the

spot;

you

see

Seth

Curry

there

as

well.

The

chair

is

a

little

more

distant

than

behind

the

bench.

The

new

protocols

for

the

bench:

once

you

come

off,

the

mask

goes

on

immediately

unless

you're

in

the

cool-down

area,

which

Joel

seems

to

spend

much

of

his

time

in.

James

completes

the

three-point

play

and

has

nine

points

now.

He's

really

lollygagging

out

of

the

gates.

Milton

in

the

game.

Milton

has

been

one

of

the

better

bench

players

this

year.

Milton

for

three

in

and

out.

Kuzma

with

another

rebound.

Dwight

Howard's

also

on

for

Philadelphia.

Kuzma,

the

floater.

A

late

whistle

and

a

foul.

Kuzma

was

waiting

for

that

whistle.

You

mentioned

Anthony

Davis

kind

of

pulling

at

his

knee.

This

was

during

the

last

timeout,

again.

You

see

the

grimacing.

Something's

up.

Let's

see

if

we

can

get

some

information.

So

Kuzma

will

go

to

the

line.

In

talking

about

Kuzma.

He's

still

a

young

player

and

has

shown

in

his

career

that

he

can

score.

He

averaged

almost

a

game.

It

was

not

a

great

team.

But

young

players

want

to

score.

They

want

to

make

their

mark,

and

it

hasn't

been

an

easy

adjustment

for

him.

Frank

Vogel

talked

about

this.

About

learning

to

play

with

star

players.

That

you've

got

to

become

that

complementary

role

player

and

sacrifice.

He's

done

a

good

job

with

it.

He's

done

an

incredible

job.

And

I'm

going

to

go

back

to

a

season

ago.

Mike.

It

was

an

adjustment

then

as

well.

But

he

tried

to

lock

in.

He's

improved

his

defensive

hustle

and

effort.

Look

at

him

hustle

around

that

screen

right

there.

And

it

is

hard.

Look

at

guys

like

Wesley

Matthews.

A

starter

most

of

his

career.

Coming

off

the

bench.

Fewer

shots.

Less

of

a

catch-and-shoot

three

guy.

Off

the

turnover,

Ben

Simmons,

Feet

inside.

Broken

up

by

Harrell.

James

kicks

it

out.

Kuzma

baseline,

right

back

beautiful

pass

and

an

easy

bucket

as

the

Lakers

pull

within

ten.

Kuzma

has

a

greater

understanding

that

when

you

have

players

like

LeBron

and

Anthony

Davis

in

pursuit

of

a

championship

there

can't

be

wasted

possessions.

Milton

backs

up;

Dwight

Howard

has

the

mismatch

with

Matthews

on

him

and

draws

the

foul.

Matthews

trying

to

say

"got

all

ball."

Dwight

Howard

will

go

to

the

line.

Howard,

by

the

way,

has

received

his

NBA

championship

ring

already

from

the

Lakers.

But

Danny

Green

didn't

get

his

yet.

I'd

be

anxious

to

get

that.

Mike.

Congratulations

to

Steph

Curry,

who,

of

course,

moves

into

number

two

on

three-pointers

made.

And

what's

really

striking

about

Steph,

when

you

look

at

Ray

Allen

and

Reggie

Miller,

two

great

shooters

who

we

both

had

the

pleasure

to

watch,

it's

only

taken

him

games.

It's

absurd.

I

love

the

way

Reggie

Miller

was,

the

first

to

congratulate

him.

Love

it.

And

Curry

with

so

much

respect

around

the

league.

His

brother

Seth

is

gaining

respect

every

year.

It

hasn't

been

an

easy

journey

for

Seth,

but

he

is

turning

into

one

of

the

premier

shooters

in

the

league.

And

Doc

Rivers

is

raving

about

him,

not

just

because

he's

his

son-in-law.

He's

been

just

what

the

doctor

ordered

here

in

Philadelphia.

You

must

have

shooters

around

Ben

and

Joel.

Boy,

he

and

Tobias

have

shot

it

really

well

from

three-point

territory.

The

shot

clock

is

off.

No

fouls

to

give

for

Philadelphia.

And

it's

been

a

great

start

for

the

Sixers.

James

gets

past

Korkmaz.

Kuzma,

good

look

for

three.

Shot

won't

go.

Rebound

Milton.

Final

seconds.

Won't

get

it

off.

And

that

will

end

the

opening

period.

Philadelphia

shot

from

the

field.

Joel

Embiid

with

points

and

a

advantage.

Let's

change

the

view

of

the

game.

Joel

Embiid

has

them

up

He

has

points

on

shooting.

He's

already

been

to

the

foul

line

six

times.

It

hasn't

mattered

which

defender

they

put

on

him.

He's

been

able

to

score

or

draw

the

foul.

Such

a

nice

touch.

Welcome

back

to

NBA

Wednesday,

How

great

to

have

Lisa

Salters

back

in

the

NBA.

She's

off

those

frigid

football

fields.

Can

do

work

inside.

Meanwhile,

Howard

just

threw

up

an

air

ball,

then

went

to

the

line,

and

here

Embiid

is

having

some

fun

with

his

teammates.

We

said

he's

having

more

fun

this

year.

That

is

classic

Joel,

and

this

is

what

I'm

talking

about,

that

charming

personality.

Now

the

key

is,

You

know,

there's

always

a

line:

when

it's

time

to

work.

It's

time

to

work,

But

I

just

think

he

is

such

a

great

character

in

addition

to

being

a

great

basketball

player.

You

know,

Tobias

Harris

has

a

little

theory

on

it

as

Marquis

Morris

throws

it

out

of

bounds.

He

said,

Hey,

Joel

Embiid's

a

new

dad.

He's

got

a

son

now

that

brings

him

so

much

joy.

He

thinks

that's

a

part

of

him

just

being

more

upbeat

and

having

a

better

time

this

year.

Yeah,

Interesting.

I

also

think

he

was,

You

know,

Disappointed.

His

numbers

were

excellent,

but

no

All-NBA

team

last

year.

They

underperformed

all

year.

That's

embarrassing

for

a

guy

who's

got

some

pride.

Howard

with

a

block,

but

Marquis

Morris

right

there.

Talen

Horton-Tucker

has

come

into

the

game.

Horton-Tucker

out

there

with

James,

Matthews,

Morris,

and

Kuzma.

Lakers

starting

to

have

some

success

inside

the

paint.

They've

got

of

their

from

inside.

Shot

clock

at

four.

Matthews

has

always

been

a

good

defender

and

right

on

cue

with

a

nice

steal.

James

using

a

Morris

screen

and

Pass.

That

shot

won't

count,

so

the

Lakers

will

take

it

out.

Lakers,

as

mentioned,

on

the

road.

Granted,

a

little

different

road

experience

for

Frank

Vogel

and

all

in

the

NBA.

It's

not

easy

though,

especially

if

you

go

on

a

seven-game

trip

you

go

into

the

hotel,

you

can't

leave

the

hotel

and

you

really

can't

even

eat

with

your

team

at

those

big

ballrooms.

They're

trying

to

encourage

players

to

pick

up

the

food

and

bring

it

back

to

their

rooms.

The

isolation

in

the

bubble

was

one

thing.

The

road

this

year,

The

isolation

in

some

ways

is

more

challenging.

I

think

about

Frank

Vogel.

He

was

talking

about

having

to

bring

a

third

bag

so

he

could

bring

some

exercise

equipment

because

depending

on

which

gym

you're

in,

in

which

hotel,

you

can,

or

maybe

you

can't

use

it.

James

methodically

but

effectively

lays

it

up

and

in.

And

slowly,

the

Lakers

are

coming

back.

James

now

with

points.

I

mean,

Mike,

of

their

points

from

point-blank

range

in

the

paint.

LeBron's

totals

are

starting

to

add

up.

Listen,

he's

taking

more

threes,

so

he

just

likes

the

matchup

right

now.

Nice

floater

from

Shake

Milton.

His

first

bucket.

I

want

to

call

him

Malik

Milton

because

nobody

calls

him

by

his

real

name

anymore.

He

said

even

his

mom

calls

him

Shake.

Name

coming

from

his

dad,

the

college

player.

Tucker

kicks

it

out

to

Markie

Morris

for

three

that

won't

go.

Rebound

to

Simmons,

and

Simmons

is

bumped

by

Morris

as

he

goes

up

the

floor.

So

he

checks

back

in

and

tries

to

get

right

back

to

work,

pushing

the

pace.

It's,

to

me.

It's

sustaining

that

if

you're

bent.

And,

of

course,

Marquise

Morris

does

so

well

getting

under

the

skin

of

an

opponent.

Right.

With

a

smile.

Two

and

a

half

gone

by

here

in

the

second.

Philadelphia

raced

out

to

a

lead.

A

good

start

here

in

the

second

and

at

the

end

of

the

first

by

the

Lakers.

Korkmaz

on

the

pull-up.

Smooth-looking

jumper

there.

James

drives

past

Korkmaz.

Feed

inside

to

Kuzma.

He

lost

the

handle

momentarily

but

held

on.

Kyle

Kuzma

has

been

active

off

the

bench.

He's

been

active.

In

that

instance,

I

think

he

was

just

thinking.

I'm

cutting

to

the

rim

to

be

an

offensive

rebounder.

Trying

to

be

opportunistic.

But

hands

were

ready.

LeBron

gets

it

to

him,

and

Tobias

Harris

drives

on

Kuzma.

Harris

will

shoot

free

throws.

So

LeBron

goes

up

the

dribble

drive.

Kuzma's

going

to

come

into

your

screen

on

the

right-hand

side.

He's

just

anticipating.

I

know

I've

got

an

excellent

passer.

Let

me

be

opportunistic.

And

you

said

it,

you

know.

They're

not

running

sets

for

Kyle

Kuzma

like

they

were

his

first

couple

years

when

the

Lakers

were

really

struggling

out

of

the

gates.

Kuzma

picks

up

his

first.

Harris

is

another

one

after

last

season.

He

had

a

terrific

regular

season.

But

he

really

struggled

in

the

playoffs.

He's

been

such

an

efficient

scorer

so

far

this

season.

Nine-point

lead

for

Philly.

James

gets

inside.

Roller

won't

go.

Rebound

tipped

a

couple

of

times.

Shake

Milton

throws

it

ahead

to

Simmons.

Simmons

in

the

open

floor.

Curry

off

balance.

Another

pull-up

off,

and

James

looks

to

push

into

the

lane

for

a

layup.

No

good.

Milton

a

little

frustrated

as

LeBron

James

will

shoot

a

couple;

he

says

something

to

James

as

he

walks

past

you

don't

want

to

poke

the

bears,

that's

a

classic

mismatch.

Well,

he

may

have

been

saying,

"Mr.

James,

I'm

a

big

admirer

of

yours;

I

like

the

way

you

play."

That'd

probably

be

the

smartest

thing.

Well,

James

in

double

figures

again,

so

the

NBA

record

continues

he's

now

scored

in

double

figures

in

consecutive

games.

A

streak

that

Started

back

in

Over

years.

Might

sound

simple.

But

it's

incredible.

We

talk

about

'don't

poke

the

bear.'

LeBron

James

had

a

good

game

Monday

night

in

Cleveland,

His

hometown.

He

had

points

through

three

quarters.

but

the

Lakers

were

in

a

dogfight.

Misses

the

shot

at

the

end

of

the

third.

And

here's

some

cheering

from

somebody

on

the

Cavs'

staff.

We'll

see.

So

what

does

he

do?

points

in

the

fourth

quarter.

a

season-high

And

they

get

the

victory.

Especially

as

you've

played

in

so

many

enormous,

huge,

high-stakes

games

your

whole

career.

You're

playing

just

a

regular-season

game

in

the

middle

of

a

trip.

You

need

that

little

extra

motivation.

He

used

that

and

abused

the

Cavs

in

that

fourth

quarter.

Somebody

might

want

to

tell

the

staff:

That's

a

All-NBA

guy,

the

greatest

player

of

his

generation

don't

poke

the

bear,

don't

poke

the

king.

He

won

you

a

title

coming

back

from

down

to

the

Golden

State

Warriors.

Morris

misses

the

shot,

but

then

Matthews

got

pushed

down

and

a

foul

is

going

to

be

called

on,

I

believe,

Seth

Curry;

it's

his

second

foul.

Marc

Gasol

will

come

back

into

the

game.

foul

on

Philadelphia.

Shake

Milton

takes

a

seat.

So

now

Joel

Embiid

is

back

on

the

floor.

So

Marc

Gasol

re-enters.

Let's

watch.

Joel

gets

touches

in

the

post.

What

happens

with

them?

Alex

Caruso,

His

first

appearance

for

the

Lakers

tonight.

Five

on

the

shot

clock

for

James.

Harris

right

with

him;

James

steps

back.

That's

a

two-pointer

just

inside

the

arc;

he

drills

it.

It's

first-half

points

for

LeBron

James.

Caruso

guarding

Simmons.

Wide

open.

Green

for

three.

I'm

sorry

about

that.

They

run

that

pick-and-roll

with

those

two

guys.

It

may

not

always

be

screening

action.

But

they're

putting

Joel

and

Ben

in

such

close

proximity,

They

backfill

the

corner

with

a

three-point

shooter.

Good

luck

guarding

that

action.

This

new

roster

for

the

Sixers

has

that

perimeter

game.

Caruso,

Nice

little

hop

step,

can't

finish.

Gasol,

the

offensive

rebound.

Horton

Tucker

Always

attacking.

Finishing,

this

guy

is

aggressive;

he

raised

eyebrows

in

the

preseason,

had

some

spectacular

games,

and

Frank

Vogel

has

been

giving

him

more

time

he

came

out

attacking

tonight;

Harris

goes

at

Gasol,

sweet

move

from

Tobias

Harris,

he's

got

eight

points,

the

lead

back

to

eight,

and

they

bump

into

each

other,

Horton

Tucker

again.

Ball

poked

away.

Danny

Green,

Good

hands.

Simmons

back

to

Harris.

Embiid

sets

for

the

three.

Approaching

the

midway

point

here

in

the

second

quarter.

James

gets

inside.

Banks

it

in

with

the

left

hand.

And

he

wanted

a

foul.

There

was

a

little

extra

shove

after

the

play,

seen

with

Embiid.

I

don't

know

how

he

didn't

come

down

before

releasing

the

ball

with

that

contact.

LeBron

James.

Seth

Curry,

Nice

move

there.

Curry

finds

Embiid.

Embiid

against

Caruso.

Looking

to

overwhelm

him

comes

up

short.

He

thought

he

was

fouled.

And

I

think

we

need

to

say

this

several

times.

There's

Alex

Caruso,

He's

the

number

one

three-point

shooter

in

the

NBA

right

now,

and

as

Davis

banks

it

home.

And

that's

no

knock

on

his

three-point

shooting.

He

doesn't

really

shoot

enough

to

stay

amongst

the

leaders.

But

right

now,

He's

number

one

in

three-point

percentage.

He's

fouled.

Embiid

got

knocked

to

the

floor.

Caruso

counted,

and

a

foul.

Caruso

was

an

option

on

that

possession.

Chance

for

a

three-point

play.

The

Lakers

are

fifth

in

the

NBA

in

three-point

percentage

as

a

team.

Last

year

they

were

And

the

Lakers

are

now

back

within

four.

So

the

shooting

is

better.

Their

bench

productivity

is

so

much

better.

Caruso

makes

it

a

three-point

game.

Seth

Curry,

By

the

way,

picked

up

his

third

foul

on

that

last

possession.

Again,

trying

to

draw

that

side-to-side

swipe.

He's

looking

for

the

call

that

he's

been

getting

quite

a

bit.

And

Marc

Gasol

is

having

some

fun

with

him.

I

don't

want

to

see

him

doing

this.

I

want

to

see

him

on

the

block

punishing

people.

Why

are

you

trying

to

rip

through

a

move

with

Alex

Caruso?

Go

get

yourself

in

the

deep

post.

Here,

here.

Drives

inside.

Flips

it

up.

Shot

won't

go.

But

he

drew

the

foul

that

time.

It's

not

just

that

he's

physical.

He

knows

how

to

draw

fouls.

So

Caruso

picks

up

his

first,

and

this

will

be

free

throws

seven

and

eight,

and

he

has

not

scored

here

in

the

second.

Rudy

Gobert,

and

the

Jazz.

Donovan

Mitchell,

By

the

way,

is

in

concussion

protocol.

He

hit

his

head

last

night

in

a

game

against

the

Knicks.

Speaking

of

that

game,

You

wonder

what

coaches

and

players

do

on

off

nights.

Doc

Rivers

was

watching

the

Knicks'

game

last

night

because

his

son

Austin

is

now

with

the

Knicks.

His

son

Austin

had

points

in

the

first

half.

He

was

for

from

the

field.

The

Knicks

were

up

big,

but

he

didn't

score

in

the

second

half.

The

Knicks

lost

big;

he

said

he

had

fun.

He

said

he

had

a

blast

watching

his

son

play.

I

watched

that

game.

Mike.

I

did

not

watch

you.

I

hate

to

say

it;

I

watched

the

Utah

Jazz

broadcast.

Sorry

about

that.

You

didn't

sound

like

you

hated

to

say

it;

in

fact,

You

seemed

to

enjoy

telling

me.

I'm

in

Utah

this

week.

So

I

was

watching

their

broadcast.

On

the

drive,

Danny

Green

flips

it

up

with

the

left

hand.

It's

short.

Simmons

is

looking

for

it;

Schroeder.

Schroeder

comes

away

with

a

violation.

Great

hustle

by

Schroeder.

And

this

is

one

thing

that

You

know,

You

had

asked

Frank

Vogel,

Was

there

anything

that

surprised

you

about

Schroeder?

He

said

how

elite

he

is

as

a

defensive

guard.

Great

hustle

play

right

there

to

get

a

possession.

Back

in

Philadelphia,

Over

the

past

hours,

There

have

been

nonstop

tributes

for

a

member

of

our

NBA

family

we

lost

yesterday.

Sekou

Smith,

He

was

a

wonderful

writer

and

broadcaster.

He

passed

away

at

the

age

of

following

his

battle

with

COVID.

You

know,

The

word

'devastated'

is

overused

and

exaggerated.

But

there

are

many

throughout

the

NBA

who

are

truly

devastated.

And

You

know,

We

pray

that

Sekou's

wife

and

kids

will

at

some

point

have

a

chance

to

read

and

listen

to

all

the

beautiful

tributes.

The

tributes

of

love,

respect

and

admiration.

And

hopefully

that

can

provide

just

a

tiny

bit

of

comfort.

Sekou

represented

the

very

best

of

our

business

in

so

many

ways

as

a

talent

and

as

a

man.

It's

been

a

hard

hours

for

so

many

throughout

the

NBA.

He

was

a

consummate

pro,

passionate

about

the

NBA.

He's

long-armed

and

really

smart.

Does

a

nice

job

against

a

good

offensive

player.

Ball

poked

away.

Nice

tap

from

Green.

Inside

to

Simmons.

Layup

shot.

Good.

Simmons

on

the

second

effort.

Sixers

back

up

by

five.

Minute

and

a

half

remaining

here

in

the

second.

Anthony

Davis

against

Embiid,

looking

for

it,

and

there's

a

side-to-side

swipe.

So

it

won't

be

in

the

act

of

shooting.

But

they're

in

the

bonus

and

in

the

penalty.

So,

free

throws.

Misses

the

free

throw.

Those

other

three

players

have

that

championship

confidence.

Anthony

Davis

has

that

championship

confidence.

He

knows

what

it

takes

to

come

through

in

big

finals

and

playoff

games;

he

has

that

championship

confidence

right

now,

has

always

been

such

a

monster

talent,

and

you

can

see

it

all

on

display.

I

mean,

I

think

about

that

three

from

deep

under

pressure

of

the

game

situation

and

the

clock

Tobias

Harris'

step-back

jumper

won't

go;

Davis

tries

to

save

it

and

does.

James

leads

the

break,

drives

inside,

layup

won't

go;

Schröder

looks

to

keep

it

alive,

knocks

it

loose,

and

it's

Philadelphia

ball.

He's

been

around

the

ball

a

lot

trying

to

create

or

save

possessions,

hasn't

scored,

As

you

mentioned

earlier,

Frank

Vogel

said

he

did

not

know

that

Schröder

was

this

good

defensively.

Offensive

foul

call:

Joel

Embiid

got

tangled

up

with

LeBron

James,

and

Embiid

picks

up

his

second

personal.

The

scoring

has

slowed

down

a

little

bit

for

Joel

Embiid.

LeBron

going

to

sell

it?

I

don't

know.

What

do

you

think?

I

don't

think

that

was

great.

We

heard

the

fake

boos

from

the

crowd.

Davis

the

three-pointer.

Shot

won't

go.

Milton

with

the

rebound.

And

Embiid

goes

down

again.

This

time

with

Gasol.

What

is

going

on

out

there?

So

this

time

the

foul

will

be

on

Marc

Gasol.

They're

in

the

penalty

and

Gasol

picks

up

his

second.

They've

had

some

little

conversations

since

this

game

started.

He

and

Joel

Embiid.

Joel

Embiid,

points,

three

boards.

Gasol

still

chatting

away.

Speaking

of

the

Hawks,

Clint

Capela.

Wow.

He

is

putting

up

massive

numbers

in

the

last

four

or

five

games.

I'm

surprised

by

the

ability

of

him

and

Trae

Young

to

establish

such

synergy

so

early

in

their

partnership.

About

a

six-and-a-half-second

difference

between

the

shot

clock

and

game

clock.

Davis

against

Embiid.

One.

The

big

man.

Davis

across

the

lane.

What

a

beautiful

move

for

Anthony

Davis.

Come

on,

The

defense

was

excellent

as

well.

It's

just

better

offense.

You're

talking

about

two

seven-footers

with

exceptional

feet.

That

was

brilliant.

Shot

clock

is

off.

No

fouls

to

give

for

the

Lakers.

Embiid.

Pass

deflected.

Picked

up

by

Shake

Milton.

Two

seconds

remaining.

Milton

fires

away.

Shot

won't

go.

It

comes

to

an

end.

LeBron

James.

Lakers

trailed

by

early.

But

James

with

points.

Embiid

with

As

Philadelphia

hangs

on

to

the

lead.

But

a

nice

turnaround

for

the

Lakers

trying

to

stay

undefeated

at

home.

Anthony

Davis

also

in

double

figures

with

Two

quarters

complete

in

Philadelphia.

It's

Philly

up

by

four.

Back

and

help.

Hey,

Guys,

Let's

keep

attacking,

All

right?

Keep

moving

that

ball.

We've

seen

this

several

times

with

our

group

this

year,

where

we

give

up

a

first

quarter,

And

we

tighten

the

screws,

And

we

figure

out

the

opponent

a

little

bit

more

as

the

game

goes

along.

Nice

little

chess

match

between

Frank

Vogel

and

Doc

Rivers

as

we

welcome

you

back

to

NBA

Wednesday,

Two

quarters

complete

here

at

the

Wells

Fargo

Center

in

Philadelphia,

And

the

Sixers

lead

the

Lakers

Hello

again,

Everyone.

With

Doris

Burke,

Mike

Breen

on

hand,

You

had

a

feeling

he

would

not

miss

a

game

of

this

caliber,

and

I

loved

his

aggression

out

of

the

gates;

it

started

early.

In

this

particular

instance

he's

just

going

to

sprint

to

the

rim,

Anthony

Davis

knocks

Kyle

Kuzma

out

of

the

way

and

gets

an

easy

two.

Beautiful

opportunity,

and

LeBron

James

of

his

came

in

the

paint.

Good

little

interior

screen.

He

misses

that

one

because

Joel

Embiid

says,

'Uh-uh.'

The

matchup

is

right.

How

about

that?

Furkan

Korkmaz

just

dismisses

him,

And

he's

at

the

cup.

Beautiful.

James

with

Davis

right

behind

with

Ben

Simmons

had

a

strong

start

as

well.

Yeah,

And

the

Sixers

jumped

out

early.

They

were

up

as

many

as

points.

Until

the

Lakers

made

their

comeback.

As

the

third

quarter

gets

underway.

Tobias

Harris.

Shot

off

nicely

by

Gasol.

Embiid

with

seven

to

shoot.

Here's

the

double

team.

Harris.

A

contested

three.

Blocked

by

Davis.

Batted

out

to

Curry.

He's

got

to

get

it

off,

and

draws.

Nope.

Thought

he

was

going

to

draw

a

foul.

But

instead

it's

a

violation.

Meanwhile,

that

was

a

clever

move

from

Schröder,

faked

out

Simmons;

Schröder

gets

his

first

field

goal.

Tobias

Harris

goes

right

at

Gasol

and

this

time

scores.

So

Doc

Rivers

challenged

Tobias

to

get

back

to

being

decisive

on

the

catch,

Mike.

Everything

he

does

is

quick.

That

was

one

of

the

messages

he

gave

to

the

entire

team:

make

quick

decisions,

as

Simmons

did

off

the

turnover.

He's

got

Anthony

Davis.

He

goes

at

him.

Leans

in.

Banks

at

home.

Love

the

no-call

and

love

to

see

him

get

right

downhill.

And

this

is

what

you

want

from

your

stars.

Right?

Philadelphia

has

an

opportunity

to

say

they

are

for

real

against

a

quality

opponent.

For

them

to

beat

the

best

and

to

win

a

championship.

Schröder

misses.

Simmons

has

to

be

in

that

attack

mode

on

both

ends.

Always

a

great

defender.

Danny

Green,

Another

three.

Four

threes

for

Danny

Green

against

his

former

team.

He's

got

points

and

the

lead

back

up

to

nine.

Think

about

it,

Mike.

This

is

exactly

how

the

first

period

started.

Where

Ben

Simmons

takes

it

and

goes.

Gets

downhill.

Be

aggressive

and

assertive.

And

set

the

pace.

In

and

out

to

Davis.

Simmons

also

has

points

and

assists.

Tobias

Harris

connects

on

a

three.

Quick

timeout

for

Frank

Vogel.

Frank

Vogel,

as

the

Sixers

go

up

by

a

dozen

once

again.

They're

of

now

from

downtown.

Ben

Simmons

changes

the

dynamic.

This

guy

doesn't

shoot

a

lot

outside

the

paint.

So

you

want

him

in

the

pace.

You

want

him

pushing

the

floor,

using

his

vision.

Just

a

cross-court

pass.

A

little

slow

start

by

Los

Angeles.

These

are

the

sneakers

that

Curry

is

wearing

tonight

in

honor

of

Kobe

Bryant

and

his

daughter.

The

day

after

the

one-year

anniversary

of

the

tragic

helicopter

crash.

And

so

many

players.

As

Lisa

Salters

told

us

earlier

tonight

on

NBA

Courtside.

As

Davis

puts

it

in.

paying

tribute

throughout

the

entire

league.

Not

just

to

basketball,

it

goes

through

all

sports.

So

often

you

see

the

jerseys

and

the

shoes.

As

Simmons

misses,

but

a

foul.

He

was

Kobe,

this

generation's

Michael

Jordan.

That's

Joel

Embiid

with

his

tribute

tonight.

And

as

the

entire

NBA

continues

to

keep

the

memory

alive,

Joel

Embiid

backs

that

one

home,

for

Embiid.

The

lead

is

for

the

Sixers.

What

a

pass.

Inside,

blocked

by

Curry,

and

a

jump

ball.

Seth

Curry,

An

excellent

defensive

play

off

that

sweet

look

from

LeBron

James.

The

number

of

passes

in

this

guy's

arsenal

with

either

hand,

this

time

behind

the

back,

Ben

not

pressuring

him,

and

so

he's

like,

all

right,

let

me

just

throw

a

top-of-the-key,

behind-the-back

pass

to

the

rim.

He

said

it's

Saturday.

Nice

job

recovering.

James

left

open,

decides

to

shoot.

Comes

up

too

strong,

and

Ben

Simmons

comes

the

other

way.

Simmons

very

aggressive

tonight,

drives.

Falling

away,

shot

misses,

and

Caldwell

Pope

grabs

the

board.

Schroeder,

last

year,

such

a

great

sixth

man

for

Oklahoma

City.

He

started

every

game

for

the

Lakers.

LeBron

James,

This

time

it's

good.

Marc

Gasol

is

just

so

smart.

Just

a

subtle

shift

in

his

body

to

change

an

angle.

It

helps

his

teammate

get

a

little

bit

of

separation.

Shot

clock

down

to

nine

as

Embiid

launches

a

three-pointer.

Anthony

Davis

with

his

fourth

rebound.

Schroeder

looking.

Harris

nearly

poked

it

away.

Gasol

left

open,

tries

a

three,

And

that's

good.

Now

he's

shooting

from

three-point

range.

First

one

of

many

centers

in

the

league

who

for

years

didn't

take

it,

but

then

it

became

a

big

part

of

their

offensive

arsenal.

Seth

Curry

can't

connect.

He's

going

to

have

to

be

willing

to

shoot

it

tonight,

Mike.

You

look

at

career-low

field

goal

attempts

from

Mark,

but

because

of

the

way

the

Sixers

want

to

play,

he's

like,

all

right,

you're

going

to

leave

me

open,

I'm

going

to

take

them.

He

seems

to

thoroughly

enjoy

the

playmaker

role.

Schroeder

again

off

the

dribble.

A

couple

of

great

drives

to

the

basket

for

Schroeder

here

in

the

third.

Eight

straight

points

now

by

the

Lakers.

The

lead

is

cut

to

five.

Well,

success

on

the

road,

often

key

to

winning

a

championship.

Road

winning

percentage,

Obviously

with

no

fans,

so

far

in

franchise

history

to

start.

The

most

road

wins

to

start

a

season

in

NBA

history.

Remember

that

Warriors

team

that

went

to

start.

They

won

straight

road

games

to

start

the

season.

Philadelphia,

meanwhile,

a

dominant

home

team

last

year.

They're

in

their

own

building

as

Embiid

falls

down

once

again.

A

held

ball

with

on

the

shot

clock

for

Philly

should

they

win

the

tip,

and

Embiid

deciding

to

take

a

little

breather.

By

the

way,

the

longest

road

winning

streak

of

all

time

is

And

it

was

the

Lakers.

Back

in

the

season.

Looks

like

he

may

have

taken

a

shot

to

the

head.

I'd

like

to

see

Joel

Embiid

get

back

to

the

post.

Where,

in

the

first

period,

he

was

drawing

foul

after

foul.

Whether

it

was

Mark

or...

Trez

or

AD

nice

feet

inside,

but

Simmons

couldn't

quite

get

it.

Ball

knocked

out

of

bounds.

It's

still

Philly

ball.

Simmons'

shot

did

not

hit

the

rim,

I

don't

believe

it.

The

Sixers

are

saying,

of

course,

that

it

did.

But

there's

only

one

left

on

the

I

think

he

came

up

short

on

it.

Green,

catch,

fires,

three-pointer,

and

that's

a

violation.

Rivers

in

his

first

year,

after

the

surprise

firing

by

the

Clippers

last

year,

and

the

Clippers,

Their

season

ended

in

that.

A

tough

second-round

loss

to

the

Nuggets.

They

were

up

three

games

to

one,

up

by

double

figures

in

Game

Five,

Game

Six,

and

Game

Seven.

And

the

Nuggets

wound

up

winning

it,

advancing

to

the

conference

finals.

Pass

to

LeBron

James.

Simmons

on

him.

That's

a

fun

matchup.

Simmons,

such

a

good

defender,

has

the

size

to

compete

with

him.

And

James

gets

past

him,

misses

it,

and

Simmons

with

the

rebound.

James

thought

he

was

hit.

Here

comes

Simmons.

Drives,

kicks

it

out,

deflected

by

Davis.

James

still

arguing

down

the

other

end.

This

guy

is

elite

on

the

defensive

end.

He's

got

a

big-time

assignment.

Just

trying

to

keep

active

hands.

It's

like

he's

got

a

piece

of

his

wrist.

Yeah,

there

was

certainly

some

contact

there,

playing

with

Gasol;

he

fights

him

off.

When

he

goes

down

hard,

he

lands

on

his

back

and

he's

hurt.

He's

had

that

back

problem

a

couple

of

times

this

year,

but

on

that

one

it

didn't

seem

like

he

was

able

to

brace

his

fall

at

all,

and

it's

a

concern.

Doc

Rivers

quickly

jumps

off

the

bench.

He's

looking

up

at

the

big

screen

to

see

a

replay.

but

Embiid

is

writhing

in

pain

right

now.

I

think

it

was

the

second

defender,

LeBron,

coming

over

to

see

who

fouled

him,

but

also

looked

like

part

of

the

reason

he

couldn't

get

his

bearing.

I

said

I

wanted

to

see

him

more

in

the

post,

so

he

attacks,

and

LeBron

uses

both

arms

to

push.

I

think

they're

going

to

take

a

look

at

that.

That's

probably

going

to

be

a

flagrant

foul,

Yes,

because

he's

up

in

the

air.

Oh,

Man,

again,

no

chance

to

brace

the

fall

as

he

lands.

He's

gingerly

walking,

trying

to

walk

it

off,

but

there's

that.

Anybody

who's

ever

had

back

problems

knows

that

walk

and

that

gait.

So

the

officials

are

checking

whether

or

not

it's

a

flagrant.

He

didn't

play

in

the

last

game

because

of

lower

back

tightness,

and

that's

the

spot

he's

grabbing.

Well,

He

hits

the

floor

every

game

and

it

can

take

its

toll

on

a

body.

He's

in

terrific

shape;

you

hear

that

from

players

all

the

time.

Let's

listen

to

it...

then

again,

let's

not

you

hear

players

say

that

every

year.

I'm

in

the

best

shape

of

my

career.

But

in

this

case

for

Embiid

it's

certainly

true.

A

flagrant

one

is

going

to

be

called,

so

Embiid

is

going

to

shoot

the

free

throws;

he's

walking

a

little

better,

But,

well,

It's

going

to

be

two

free

throws

and

the

ball,

as

LeBron

James

picks

up

the

flagrant;

he's

trying

to

express

what

his

intentions

were.

And

even

though,

I

mean,

LeBron

James

is

not

looking

to

hurt

anybody.

So

it's

not

an

intentional

thing.

But

when

Embiid

went

up

and

you

push,

that's

where

you

get

in

trouble.

And

I

think

that's

the

right

call,

Doris.

That's

a

flagrant

foul.

Yeah,

I

thought

so,

Mike,

The

replay

shows

he

extended

his

arms.

Particularly

because

he

was

in

the

air.

Embiid

hits

the

pair.

Let's

see

if

he

stays

in

the

game.

He's

not

moving

toward

the

bench.

So

that's

a

good

sign.

Embiid

now

with

points.

The

Sixers'

lead

is

back

up

to

seven.

Can

Embiid

continue

to

fight

in

the

post?

That's

where

he's

been

most

effective.

Lakers

weren't

ready.

Simmons

can't

quite

finish.

Ball

knocked

away.

And

Schroeder

is

racing

up

the

floor.

Great

hustle

by

Seth

Curry

to

get

a

hand

up

in

the

paint

to

discourage

the

push-ahead

pass.

That's

the

first

flagrant

foul

by

LeBron

James

since

Beautiful

move

from

Anthony

Davis.

And

it's

only

the

sixth

flagrant

foul

of

his

career.

Five-point

gain,

Danny

Green.

Not

that

time.

Caldwell

Pope,

Quick

outlet

to

James.

It's

not

his

nature,

Mike.

He

respects

and

appreciates

the

game

so

much.

I

don't

think

that

was

intentional,

But

I

do

think

it

was

the

appropriate

call.

I

agree.

James

to

Schroeder.

Schroeder

fakes.

Shot

clock

at

six.

Schroeder

drives

again.

Gets

past

the

defense.

And

Schroeder

with

three

goals

here

in

this

third

quarter.

He

was

for

in

the

first

half.

Having

great

success

with

a

right-handed

game,

Putting

his

head

down,

Getting

to

the

cup

with

his

right

hand,

he

puts

his

head

down

to

get

past

individual

defenders;

Davis

had

his

head

in

there

and

Embiid's

arms

hit

him

Frank

Vogel

may

come

off

the

bench

and

they'll

take

a

look

to

see

whether

it's

a

flagrant,

as

Embiid

made

contact

with

Davis'

face

with

his

right

elbow

and

the

personal

foul

is

on

Embiid.

Will

they

take

a

look

at

this,

Mike?

That's

above

the

shoulders.

But

I

think

he's

just

making

a

normal

basketball

swipe

there.

Does

it

hit

him

in

the

chin?

Absolutely.

He

swipes

it.

And

then

that

right

elbow

comes

down

again.

The

rip-through

move

happened

when

he

came

back.

These

are

hard

calls.

I

don't

think

this

is

going

to

be

flagrant.

Davis

has

something

on

his

teeth

there.

Obviously.

There's

David

Guthrie,

who

is

the

crew

chief.

Over

there

with

Ray

Acosta.

Mitchell

Irvin,

the

third

official.

Number

There's

the

side,

and

then

it

comes

back

down.

Is

it

a

matter

of

side

to

side?

Now

he's

getting

in

position

to

shoot

the

ball.

It

looks

like

a

much

more

natural

basketball

play.

but

that

little

final.

After

replay

review,

The

play

is

ruled

a

flagrant

penalty

one.

Unnecessary

contact.

That's

a

hard

one.

but

I

can

understand

him

calling.

After

the

side

to

side,

it

comes

down,

That's

kind

of

the

motion

where

you

have

to

get

your

shot.

On

that

one,

it

does

look

like

he

comes

down

with

the

elbow.

It

just

goes

to

show

me

how

important

angles

are

to

officiating.

Right.

You

know,

on

both

of

them.

Davis

and

Embiid

are

talking

about

both

of

them.

Whether

or

not

it's

intentional.

I

don't

think

either

one

was.

They're

not

necessarily

basketball

plays.

So

Davis

will

now

shoot

two

free

throws.

I'm

here

for

all

the

chatter

tonight

though.

What

is

better

than

the

game

being

played

the

way

it

is?

These

are

two

teams

atop

their

respective

conferences

with

similar

pursuits,

wanting

to

be

the

best

in

pursuit

of

an

NBA

title.

It

should

be

competitive

and

chippy.

Two

teams

that

play

good,

Aggressive

physical

defense.

Davis

now

at

points.

James

taking

a

rest.

And

the

Lakers

back

with

him,

too.

Two

shots

and

possession.

By

the

way,

The

foul

on

Embiid,

the

offensive

foul,

was

his

second.

That's

his

career

flagrant.

Shake

Milton

is

back

in.

Milton

has

had

a

terrific

season

despite

having

a

quiet

night.

I

miss

being

close

enough

to

the

floor

to

maybe

catch

a

word

or

two.

You're

not

kidding.

Schroeder

trying

to

draw

a

foul

to

no

avail.

Harris

racing

up

the

floor.

Harris

kicks

it

out

to

Curry.

Curry

called

for

a

travel.

Curry's

got

to

get

the

rhythm

he

had

at

the

start

of

the

season

back.

A

timeout

with

COVID.

This

is

part

of

the

season.

Right?

Yeah.

Jason

Tatum

talked

about

this.

He

came

back,

had

a

strong

game,

but

admitted

to

experiencing

some

fear.

Curry

missed

seven

games

after

testing

positive.

When

you

test

positive,

you

can't

work

out.

So

when

you

come

back,

then

it's

a

matter

of

conditioning

again.

Gasol.

That

three-pointer

rattles

in

and

out.

Tobias

Harris

pushes

off

another

defensive

rebound.

He

continues

to

push

down

the

lane.

Left-handed.

Sweet

move

from

Tobias

Harris.

He's

got

No

hesitation.

Mike.

Just

reading,

Surveying

as

he's

navigating

up

the

floor.

Schroeder

to

Davis.

Step

back.

Jumper

short.

Harris.

Another

rebound.

Yeah.

With

Simmons

off

the

floor,

You

know,

Harris

has

been

much

more

likely

to

rake

and

take

and

navigate.

Davis

with

the

block,

but

a

goaltend.

Jake

Milton,

the

aggressive

attack

at

the

goal.

Doc

Rivers

applauding.

Two

points

for

Milton.

So

the

Sixers

are

trying

to

keep

their

lead.

But

watch

Tobias

Harris.

You

have

Kuz

retreating.

He

never

really

stops

the

ball.

He's

fiddling

with

his

armband.

And

Tobias

says,

All

right,

You

pull

that

sweatband

up.

I'm

going

to

go

right

by

him.

Harris

is

Davis.

One-on-one

coverage.

Going

to

do

it

alone.

Now

Danny

Green

comes

across.

Boy,

Well

defended

by

Tobias

Harris.

Made

it

a

very

difficult

shot

for

Davis.

Embiid,

That's

a

three.

And

a

lead

back

up

to

nine.

Frank

Vogel

needs

another

timeout.

The

Lakers

are

storming

back

again,

but

the

Sixers

have

an

answer.

Tobias

Harris.

You

mentioned

it,

Mike.

The

size

allows

him.

Sheik's

thinking

about

pinching

down,

But

Tobias

is

like,

I

got

him.

I'm

bodying

up.

I'm

Let

me

just

make

him

shoot

over

me.

And

then

Embiid.

Trailing

up

the

floor,

Gets

to

three.

My

back

might

be

sore,

You

just,

all

the

time,

think

of

the

names

that

have

played

in

that

rivalry,

the

greatest

the

game

has

ever

seen.

That's

when

I

became

an

NBA

fan,

watching

Larry

versus

Magic

fight.

You

and

millions

of

others

Kuzma

misses,

and

Green

gets

the

rebound.

Tyrese

Maxey,

the

rookie

from

Kentucky,

his

first

minutes

tonight.

He

has

had

some

marvelous

games,

a

young

man.

Harris,

guarded

by

Harrell,

He's

back

in.

Pulled

away.

Nice

defensive

play

as

Davis

has

it.

Stripped

on

the

other

end.

We're

seeing

some

really

nice

individual

defense

here

tonight,

as

you

would

expect

from

these

two

teams.

Schroeder

flips

it

up

and

flips

it

in.

Alex

Schroeder's

fourth

field

goal

in

the

quarter.

Doris.

Come

on,

Now,

Philadelphia

has

been

excellent

all

year

in

half-court

defense.

but

they've

been

unable

to

contain

Dennis

off

the

dribble

drive.

that

time

with

a

little

crossover.

Embiid

finds

Maxey.

Maxey.

Jumped

his

way

off.

but

Kuzma

couldn't

handle

the

rebound.

Bounced

off

his

chest,

and

it's

sixer

ball.

Where

else

can

a

classic

rivalry

never

get

old?

Pierce

puts

it

on

Tate

and

takes

it

back.

Maybe

not

the

height.

And

be

on

the

pull-up.

Morris

gets

the

weak-side

rebound.

Quick

outlet,

James

back

in

the

game.

Thybulle

guarding

him.

Spin

move.

And

the

finish.

LeBron

James

now

with

Final

minute

third

quarter.

Largest

lead

of

the

game

has

been

Philly

had

that

in

the

first

half.

Tobias

Harris.

Knocks

it

down.

He's

got

He's

just

in

a

groove.

He

is

in

a

groove

on

the

offensive

end.

Another

efficient

performance.

Doris.

He's

of

Mike.

There

were

times

a

year

ago

where

I

just

thought

he

pounded

the

ball

too

much.

Get

into

your

move

and

go.

You're

Thybulle.

Great

defense

from

Thybulle.

First

help,

and

then

he

takes

the

steal.

Milton

can't

connect.

Matthews

is

able

to

box

out

to

get

the

rebound.

Second

steal

from

Matisse

Thybulle.

Kuzma

throws

it

away.

But

a

late

whistle

and

a

foul.

And

Doc

Rivers,

He's

moving

like

he

hasn't

moved

in

years.

He's

not

happy

with

the

call.

LeBron

James

frustrated

with

Mitchell

Irvin

for

not

making

the

call

sooner.

It's

clearly

a

foul.

Irvin

was

on

the

strong

side.

It

was

the

other

official

who

made

it,

and

LeBron

was

like,

He

can't

make

the

pass

because

he's

being

mugged.

Clock

is

turned

off.

Billy

has

the

foul

to

give.

James

throws

it

inside.

Ball

deflected.

Howard

tips

it.

Thybulle

ahead.

Maxey

floats

it

up,

not

to

be,

as

the

third

quarter

comes

to

an

end.

The

Sixers

head

to

the

fourth

on

their

home

floor

with

a

seven-point

lead.

Contributions

across

the

board.

But

Tobias

Harris

in

particular.

Decisive.

Efficient.

As

Doc

Rivers

says,

I

know

what

I'm

going

to

get

from

him

every

single

night.

That's

a

huge

luxury.

Joel

Embiid.

The

train

keeps

rolling;

He

keeps

scoring.

All

right.

Tobias

Harris

misses

that.

A

whistle

and

a

foul.

I

think

it

came

on

the

initial

shot

or

on

the

rebound.

Harrell

picks

up

his

fourth

on

the

rebound.

So

they'll

take

it

out;

now

there's

Embiid,

and

here's

the

concern.

No.

He

stayed

in

the

game

after

it.

Does

it

tighten

up?

Obviously,

He's

trying

to

continue

to

stretch

it

behind

the

basket

at

the

other

end

of

the

floor.

Good

defense

there

for

Matthews.

Lakers

thought

it

was

off

Tobias

Harris.

But

Frank

Vogel's

not

going

to

challenge

that.

He's

going

to

keep

that

challenge

in

his

pocket

for

perhaps

later.

You

know,

Dorsett...

When

you

coach

LeBron

James

or

any

LeBron

James

team,

it's

not

easy

because

the

expectations

are

so

high;

if

you

don't

win,

people

ask

what

you

did

wrong.

Maxey

with

a

sweet,

beautiful

move

and

a

whistle

is

it

against

the

Lakers

or

against

Philadelphia?

I

think

it

might

be

against

Dwight

Howard;

David

Guthrie

was

pointing

yep,

it

is

against

Howard.

I

was

saying

Vogel

did

an

extraordinary

job

last

year

in

getting

his

first

NBA

championship.

Now

they're

going

to

look

at

that.

To

see

if

it's

a

flagrant.

This

is

starting

to

become

a

habit.

The

play

is

under

review

for

a

potential

flagrant

foul.

So

he

was

tangled

up

with

Montrez

Harrell

on

the

lower-left

side

of

the

box

too

physical.

They're

"not

give

an

inch"

kind

of

guys.

Montrez

is

going

to

do

a

little

chatting

now.

Let's

see.

Just

watch

the

bottom

left

side

of

your

screen.

You

see

Montrez

has

interior

position.

Tangled

up.

Up

in

blue

there.

Let's

see,

Mike

Breen.

It

is

a

common

foul,

just

a

normal

loose

ball

foul.

Montrez

Harrell's

probably

not

happy

to

hear

that.

That's

just

two

strong

players

battling

for

position.

Nothing

dirty

there.

But

you're

right

about

Frank

Vogel

and

the

job

he

did

a

season

ago.

Mike.

And

listen,

there

was

a

lot

of

conversation

that

he

was

the

second

or

third

choice,

but

regardless,

he

has

the

perfect

temperament.

That's

the

point

it

was

an

unprecedented

season.

The

death

of

Kobe

Bryant

had

such

an

impact

in

Los

Angeles,

then

the

bubble.

James

that's

a

tough

rebound

and

traffic

for

Dwight

Howard.

Just

over

a

minute

gone

by

here

in

the

fourth,

Tobias

Harris

with

a

little

Euro-step

layup

attempt.

No

good.

But

in

fact,

do

you

think

he

has,

on

a

possession

tonight,

taken

more

than

two

dribbles?

I

can't

remember

a

possession

other

than

in

transition,

off

the

window

when

he's

advancing

it.

where

this

guy

has

needed

more

than

a

couple

of

seconds

to

get

into

what

he's

doing.

It

makes

it

very

hard

for

a

defensive

player.

Meanwhile,

This

one,

The

physical

play

is

starting

to

pick

up

a

little

bit

now.

LeBron

James

is

going

to

the

line;

he's

four

for

four

tonight.

Here's

the

double

foul.

Two

tough

guys.

And

here's

the,

as

the

officials

are

saying,

All

right.

Let's

knock

it

off.

James

now

with

points.

And

yes,

There

are

smiles.

He

does

seem

to

be

enjoying

his

time

on

the

floor

as

much

as

he

ever

has.

Legacy

secured.

The

best

player

of

his

generation.

Like

what

Giannis

said,

you

know,

I

might

be

the

two-time

MVP,

But

the

best

player

is

LeBron

James.

In

his

year

and

still

doing

what

he's

doing.

Maxey.

Here's

Shake

Milton.

Matthews

sees

some

good

defense.

Milton

falling

away.

Step

back.

The

foul

is

called.

It's

Matthews.

He

is

vehemently

arguing

the

call.

I

feel

like

he

was

trying

to

make

the

point.

Even

as

he's

fighting

over

the

screen,

I

thought

he

was

being

physical

to

let

them

know,

like,

the

screener

is

moving.

Now,

he

wraps

his

left

arm

around,

but

I

did

think

Dwight

was

moving.

Absolutely.

Shake

Milton

flips

it

up

and

in.

Milton

now

with

eight

points.

So

that's

a

big

call

there,

Right?

I

mean,

The

Sixers

score,

I

thought

it

could

have

been

an

offensive

foul.

A

nine-point

Philadelphia

lead.

James

fouled

down

the

other

end

by

Thybulle.

Thybulle

picks

up

his

second.

Three

free

throws

for

LeBron

James.

He

is

averaging

a

career-low

in

minutes

per

game.

He

still

leads

the

team

in

minutes

per

game.

They're

slowly

working

Anthony

Davis

into

more

minutes.

Just

under

minutes

a

game

for

LeBron

James

so

far

this

year;

he's

played

all

I

want

to

correct

myself:

that

double

foul

was

a

double

technical

on

Howard

and

Morris.

The

Lakers

continue

to

grind

here

on

the

road.

The

fans

are

going

crazy.

This

is

one

of

the

great

sports

cities

in

America,

and

the

fans

here

love

their

Sixers.

It's

tough

for

visitors.

Great

ball

movement

here

for

the

Lakers.

Matthews

caps

it

off

with

a

three-pointer.

I

love

that.

Alex

Caruso.

He

has

shot

the

ball

brilliantly

from

three.

He

gets

it

up

to

A.D.

A.D.

makes

one

more

pass.

Just

pretty.

And

remember,

They

started

this

game

one

for

from

three.

Milton.

Nice

move.

He

couldn't

finish.

Caruso

the

other

way.

James

thought

about

the

three.

He

finds

Davis.

Davis

is

fouled.

On

the

entry

pass,

It's

only

the

fourth

team

foul.

But

it's

four

already

in

less

than

three

minutes.

So

you

touched

on

this

earlier,

The

Lakers

are

fifth

in

three-point

percentage.

LeBron

James

kicks

it

out

to

Alex.

That's

unselfishness.

The

ball

keeps

moving.

An

uncontested

three.

So

the

Lakers

take

it

out.

Still

early

here

in

the

fourth.

The

Lakers

are

trying

to

stay

undefeated

on

the

road.

They're

so

far

away

from

Staples

Center.

Caruso

to

Davis,

stripped

down

low.

Caruso

thought

it

should

have

been

a

foul.

Simmons.

Full

head

of

steam.

Korkmaz

gets

a

good

look

and

rattles

in

a

three.

So

Korkmaz

pulled

in

off

the

near-side

corner

to

make

the

defensive

play

and

then

sprinted

in

transition.

A

frustrated

Frank

Vogel

gets

a

technical

foul.

That's

the

third

technical

of

the

season

for

Frank

Vogel.

Meanwhile,

Simmons

now

has

points,

nine

assists,

and

eight

rebounds.

Shake

Milton

is

going

to

take

the

technical

free

throw.

He

is

from

the

line

this

year.

Back

up

to

nine.

Embiid

is

still

resting.

Just

tuning

in.

He's

played

another

strong

game,

points,

but

he

landed

directly

on

his

back

without

ever

bracing

in

the

fall

on

a

flagrant

foul

by

LeBron

James.

This

is

the

stretch

he

sat

out.

James

has

a

chance

to

look

at

the

seams,

bounce

it

once,

but

can't

hit

the

shot.

Howard

with

the

rebound.

Mike,

I'm

surprised

LeBron

didn't

pull

the

trigger

right

away

on

that

three.

He

made

it

harder

by

letting

Feibel

recover.

I

agree.

Might

not

have

had

a

good

feel

of

the

ball.

Korkmaz

has

to

call

a

timeout.

Does

so

in

the

corner.

He

was

tied

up

with

seven

on

the

shot

clock.

So

we'll

take

a

break.

remaining

in

the

fourth

quarter.

A

good

one

here

in

Philadelphia.

Simmons

to

inbound.

Seven

to

shoot

for

Philadelphia.

Finds

Dwight

Howard.

And

Ben's

still

out.

Milton

struggling

with

it.

He's

got

to

put

it

up;

he

just

heaves

it

toward

the

basket.

But

he

stepped

out

of

bounds.

Montrezl

Harrell

looks

like

he's

hurt,

Mike.

He's

grabbing

his

knee.

That

was

another

excellent

defensive

possession

from

Wes

Matthews.

Harrell,

not

looking

toward

the

bench,

wants

to

stay

in

the

game.

Wes

Matthews,

He's

now.

He's

in

his

year.

He's

not

as

athletic

as

he

used

to

be.

Ever

since

he

came

into

the

league,

he's

just...

He's

such

a

fighter

defensively.

Jerry

Sloan

once

said,

I

think

this

was

his

rookie

year

when

Jerry

Sloan

coached

him

in

Utah.

I

wish

I

had

Wes

Matthews.

Wow.

The

late

great

Jerry

Sloan.

He

didn't

throw

around

compliments

easily.

No,

no,

you're

right.

Caruso

inside

the

arc.

Shot

bounces

around,

won't

go.

Knocked

out

of

bounds.

And

last

touch

by

Shaq

Milton.

Ben

Simmons

upset.

He

thought

it

was

touched

by

Davis.

So

on

the

shot

clock.

Inside

to

Davis;

Simmons

got

a

piece

of

it

from

behind.

They're

still

battling

and

a

loose-ball

foul's

gonna

go

against

Philadelphia

I

mean,

what

a

recovery,

because

that

looked

like

a

layup

for

Anthony

Davis.

It's

a

simple

up-screen,

and

the

quickness

and

length

how

about

that

from

behind?

Oh,

Yeah,

There's

plenty

of

contact

there,

Michael.

The

initial

shot

was

a

good

defensive

play,

right?

But

he

picks

up

his

second

on

that

kind

of

swat

at

it

on

the

rebound.

So

Davis

will

go

to

the

line.

Delay

of

game

called

against

Philadelphia.

So

both

teams

have

a

delay-of-game

penalty

called

against

them.

So

the

second

one

is

an

automatic

one-shot

technical.

Joel

Embiid

has

just

risen

from

his

chair.

Is

he

going

to

come

back

in

the

game?

Yep.

And

that's

a

great

sign

for

Philadelphia.

If

you

saw

that

fall

earlier,

you'd

wonder,

is

he

ever

going

to...

if

you're

ever

gonna

get

back

into

this

game.

It

looked

like

one

of

those

falls

where

he

was

gonna

be

done

for

the

night.

Yeah,

especially

coming

off

a

game

he

missed

with

back

tightness.

Anthony

Davis

is

now

three

for

seven

from

the

free-throw

line.

He's

got

points,

eight

for

but

this

guy

over

the

course

of

his

career

has

been

exceptional.

He

misses

two

in

a

row.

And

this

is

what

he's

talking

about,

not

playing

to

the

level

he's

expected

to,

to

his

own

standards.

He

shot

a

career-high

and

did

so

in

the

playoffs

as

well,

but

this

year

it's

down

to

for

a

guy

that

gets

to

the

line

a

lot.

There's

a

double

team

on

Embiid.

Nice

find

to

Simmons.

Joel

Embiid

with

a

pretty

pass

for

his

third

assist.

Embiid

said

he

loves

playing

with

Ben

Simmons

this

year.

We

gotta

have

some

release

points

on

the

double,

and

Ben

is

always

lurking.

He

tries

to

fight

over

the

screen,

gets

called

for

the

foul,

not

in

the

act

of

shooting.

But

they're

in

the

penalty.

With

a

long

way

to

go,

there's

the

double

team.

You

see

Wes

Matthews

sprinting

to

the

corner

shooter.

He's

been

opportunistic

on

that

dunker

spot.

Thybulle's

third

foul.

This

will

be

James'

and

free

throws.

His

free

throw

number

down

this

year

as

well.

Although

last

year

he

shot

and

had

a

couple

of

years

where

he

shot

really

well

from

the

line,

it's

generally

been

around

the

low

and

he

misses

too.

How

about

this

for

the

Lakers'

golden

opportunity?

They're

still

down

as

they're

missing

some

free

throws

for

from

the

free-throw

line.

It's

not

only

how

many

but

when

you

miss:

that's

four

straight

misses;

they're

four

of

nine

here

in

the

fourth

quarter,

and

they're

trying

to

draw

a

foul.

The

whole

agenda

was

to

get

a

whistle.

The

shot

quality

was

secondary

as

James

comes

right

back

and

rattles

in

a

three.

So

it's

back

to

ten.

Still

plenty

of

time.

At

least

six

and

a

half

to

go.

Davis

bats

it

away.

Simmons

now

gets

a

running

start.

Goes

at

Davis.

Switches

hands

on

the

second

effort.

Very

quick

second

jumper,

laughing

at

himself.

Gives

this

patented

shimmy

shake.

Timeout,

Lakers.

Let's

watch

Joel

Embiid.

A

lot

of

contact.

No

call.

He

throws

it

up

anticipating

the

'and-one.'

Oh

yeah.

Give

him

that.

You

should

have

seen

Tyrese

Maxey.

Green

finishes

it

off,

and

Simmons

with

his

career

triple-double,

his

third

of

the

season.

Mike,

you

felt

his

presence

tonight

right

from

the

opening

tip

when

he

started

to

get

downhill,

get

in

transition,

and

the

same

here

in

the

second

half

for

Ben

Simmons.

Caruso

answers.

Five

points

off

the

bench

for

Caruso.

James

guarding

Korkmaz.

Harrell

trying

to

guard

Embiid,

who's

calling

for

it.

Six

on

the

Embiid

falling

away.

Tough

shot.

Misses.

Wow.

That's

got

to

be

a

foul.

And

it

is.

A

loose

ball

foul

as

Ben

Simmons

winds

up

on

the

floor.

It's

going

to

go

against

the

Lakers.

It's

their

fourth

team

foul.

The

pressure

Ben

Simmons

puts

on

you

is

because

he's

an

opportunistic

offensive

rebounder.

He's

He's

reluctant

to

shoot

jump

shots.

But

you

can

get

to

the

offensive

glass.

He's

between

both

Harrell

and

Davis.

And

yet

he's

the

one

creating

a

possession

for

his

team.

LeBron

James

now

sits

down.

Caldwell-Pope

is

in,

guarding

Tobias

Harris.

Harris

likes

this

post-up

spot

and

has

points

on

of

from

the

field.

It's

back

to

a

lead.

Matthews

mid-range.

Harris

with

a

rebound.

He's

got

seven

of

those

as

well.

Simmons.

Excellent

defense

from

Alex

Caruso.

Caruso

up

top

to

Schroeder.

Schroeder

had

that

hot

stretch

in

the

third

quarter.

He

had

eight

points

in

the

third.

He

hasn't

scored

since

then.

But

he

hits

another

floater.

He

was

for

in

the

first

half.

But

he

is

for

in

the

second

half.

One-on-one.

Embiid

and

Davis.

And

Embiid

Comes

up

short

that

time.

Schröder

against

Danny

Green.

He

scoots

inside.

Layup

is

good.

And

a

foul.

Dennis

Schröder

once

again

exploding

to

the

basket

and

a

chance

for

a

three-point

play.

Twice

now

he

has

used

a

crossover

to

just

leave

the

defender

in

his

wake.

Don't

stand

up

to

Dennis

Schröder.

If

you

stand

up

for

just

a

moment

on

a

slight

change

of

pace,

and

this

is

what's

going

to

happen

to

you.

He

averaged

just

under

a

game

last

year.

He

finished

second

in

Sixth

Man

voting.

He

had

a

great

season

for

the

Thunder.

He's

once

again

a

starter.

By

the

way,

LeBron

James

is

back

in.

He

sat

for

a

minute

and

seconds.

Schröder

makes

it

a

nine-point

game.

Still

to

play

here

in

Philadelphia.

So

the

two-time

All-Star,

Ben

Simmons

Any

time

he

gets

possession

and

is

able

to

push

the

pace

at

surveying

the

floor,

looking

away

from

Danny

Green,

just

selling

the

defender.

He's

looking

to

take

a

three.

Not

the

layup.

Here

are

most

triple-doubles

before

the

age

of

look

at

Magic

and

Oscar

and

the

three

stars

respectively

on

the

right.

Pretty

incredible.

Jokic

just

watching

all

three

of

them,

the

current

guys.

Yeah.

It's

just

so

unique.

Yes,

the

way

they

play,

and

Simmons

is

one

of

them,

and

you

mentioned

the

two

All-Stars

last

year

All-NBA,

All-Defensive

First

Team,

I

mean,

he's

just

he's

an

outstanding

player.

And

when

he's

this

aggressive

and

attacking,

they're

a

different

team.

No

doubt.

And

here's

the

thing.

You

know,

in

he

took

mid-range

shots.

In

only

in

only

I

know

what

his

strengths

are,

and

I

like

that

he

plays

to

those.

But

at

some

point,

defenses

will

exploit

him

if

he

is

not

willing

to

be

assertive

and

aggressive.

James

is

aggressive

right

now

on

Harris.

Shot

clock

down

to

four.

Harris

fakes.

He

leans

in,

falls

away

with

Davis

on

him,

and

puts

it

in.

Tobias

Harris

with

a

tough

shot.

And

it's

back

up

to

Side.

Davis

got

bumped.

Schroeder

is

getting

in

the

paint

without

any

problems.

And

Davis

with

two

free

throws.

At

the

opposite

end,

this

possession

is

going

nowhere

with

an

elite

defensive

player

on

him.

He

puts

a

lot

underneath

it.

He

knows.

Never

shakes

Anthony

Davis

but

able

to

get

just

the

kind

of

arc

on

it

over

the

outstretched

arm

of

a

very

good

shot

blocker.

Davis,

who

was

three

for

eight

from

the

line

prior

to

that,

connects

there.

It's

back

to

ten.

Three

points

now

for

Davis.

A

little

full-court

pressure,

Pope's

token

pressure

Simmons

to

Embiid.

remaining

and

Davis

straight

down.

Embiid

blows

the

pass.

It's

inside.

Count

it

and

one.

What

a

play

from

the

big

man.

A

chance

for

another

point.

The

lead

is

back

up

to

Anthony

Davis

is

a

perennial

Defensive

Player

of

the

Year-level

defender.

Just

watch

what

Embiid

does

to

him.

He

pushes

up

into

him,

trying

to

make

sure.

That's

to

make

a

tough

shot.

How

about

the

footwork?

Then

the

ability

from

under

the

rim

to

finish

it.

That's

the

free

throw.

He's

of

from

the

free

throw

line.

So

he's

taken

free

throws

in

his

last

four

games.

Caruso

gets

inside

and

finishes.

But

the

Lakers

can't

just

keep

exchanging

buckets.

We're

under

three

minutes

remaining.

Trudeau

is

trying

to

harass

Simmons.

Big

height

advantage

for

Simmons.

Green.

Back

to

Embiid.

Across

the

lane.

Stripped

by

Caruso

and

stolen.

On

the

Pope.

Caruso

on

the

drive.

Left-handed

flips

it

up.

Davis,

The

offensive

rebound,

throws

it

up

in

the

air.

Tip

to

Caruso.

Puts

up

a

three.

Caruso

from

downtown.

It's

a

seven-point

game.

Caruso,

You'll

often

see

him

in

the

closing

lineup.

Very

smart,

Excellent

on

the

defensive

end,

and

he's

trying

to

make

sure

they

get

efficient

offensive

possession.

Possession,

It's

giving

the

Lakers

some

real

energy.

When

you're

on

the

road

and

you're

a

little

bit

fatigued.

Helps

to

have

somebody

pushing

it.

Simmons

to

Curry.

Curry

bumped.

He

now

steps

back.

Puts

it

up.

Shot

won't

go.

Rebound,

Davis.

Two

minutes

remaining.

Lakers

down

seven.

James

thought

about

a

three.

Davis

puts

up

a

three.

Caruso

tips

it

back

up

top.

Caldwell-Pope

to

Schroeder.

Schroeder,

a

three-pointer.

Puts

it

in.

Dennis

Schroeder

from

downtown.

It's

a

four-point

game.

And

the

Sixers

need

timeout.

remaining.

Lakers

not

done

yet.

Championship

teams

don't

go

away.

The

Lakers

are

keeping

the

pressure

on.

Anthony

Davis

misses

it.

Alex

Caruso

just

a

tremendous

job.

You

got

a

lot

of

confusion

here.

Giving

up

a

three

and

Doc

Rivers

is

like...

What

is

going

on?

Guys,

What

are

we

doing?

He

literally

says.

It's

like

they

took

their

foot

off

the

gas

pedal.

No

quit

in

the

Lakers.

Sixers

are

up

by

with

four

and

a

half

to

play.

Right

now

it's

down

to

four.

Schroeder

has

all

points

in

the

second

half.

Schroeder

is

seven

of

nine

from

the

field.

And

they

have

needed

him.

I

would

play

through

the

post

here.

You

usually

get

a

diagonal

or

some

sort

of

cross

screen

for

Joel.

Seth

Curry

using

the

screen.

Finds

Embiid.

He

fakes.

Davis

right

on

him.

A

couple

of

dribbles.

He

drives

inside.

Strip.

Ball

knocked

loose.

Davis

tried

to

save

it,

but

he

stepped

out

of

bounds.

And

the

refs

are

going

to

say,

Did

he

have

possession?

Right

now,

The

shot

clock.

They

had

it

at

six.

Now

they

reset

it.

That's

what

Doc

Rivers

is

wondering.

They

had

possession,

So

it's

a

That's

good

defensive

play.

That's

going

to

be

an

offensive

foul.

Offensive

foul

called.

Harris

trying

to

run

off

his

screen.

Are

they

going

to

challenge

it?

Harris

wants

a

challenge.

The

call

was

on

him;

he's

looking

to

Doc

Rivers

to

see

whether

or

not

to

challenge.

Not

going

to

challenge.

That's

not

an

offensive

foul.

No

way.

James

at

the

foul

line.

Lakers

down

by

four,

remaining.

James

looking

for

a

three

with

a

defender

on

him,

steps

back

as

the

shot

clock

winds

down,

then

drives

to

the

basket,

gets

inside

and

kicks

it

out

to

Caldwell-Pope

for

three

it's

a

one-point

game.

A

minute

remaining,

what

a

turnaround

here

for

the

Lakers.

Simmons

with

Schröder

on

him,

back

up

top

to

Embiid;

he

fakes

the

three,

Embiid's

pull-up

won't

go.

Danny

Green

with

the

rebound

and

a

new

clock.

Why

doesn't

he

go

up?

New

By

the

way,

Green

is

in

the

corner.

Locked

down

to

two.

Green

has

to

put

it

up.

Shot

off

the

mark.

Davis

with

the

rebound.

That's

just

an

awful

end-of-game

possession

right

there

by

the

Sixers.

They

were

indecisive

on

the

first

possession.

They

got

an

offensive

rebound

and

were

slow

to

get

into

it.

Lakers

with

a

chance

to

take

the

lead.

But

Frank

Vogel

wants

a

timeout.

seconds

remaining.

on

the

shot

clock.

They

were

down

by

here

in

the

fourth.

And

now

with

a

chance

to

take

the

lead.

How

about

LeBron's

pass?

Embiid

does

a

tremendous

job

guarding

him.

Somehow

he

finds

the

angle

and

makes

the

pass.

Lakers

were

trailing

to

with

four

and

a

half

to

play.

Alex

Caruso.

I

thought

he

gave

him

a

shot

of

energy

when

he

checked

in.

He's

oftentimes

in

the

closing

lineup.

Consider,

they

are

four

for

six

from

three

in

the

fourth

quarter.

In

the

first

three

quarters,

they

couldn't

buy

a

bucket.

Three

for

Now,

all

of

a

sudden,

the

team

that

has

been

dynamic

from

three

all

year,

fifth

overall,

has

found

their

groove.

Now

Philadelphia

still

has

one

timeout

remaining.

The

Lakers

are

now

out

of

timeouts.

There

is

the

story

from

the

fourth

quarter

scoring-wise.

Both

teams

are

in

the

penalty.

It's

Davis,

Caruso,

James,

Schroeder,

and

Caldwell-Pope.

Thibel

comes

in

for

defense.

Caruso's

going

to

inbound.

Lakers

trying

to

stay

perfect

on

the

road.

They're

on

the

road.

Schroder

looking.

Finds

it

to

James.

Guarded

by

Simmons.

Davis

cuts.

Gets

the

pass.

Layup

is

good.

And

the

Lakers

take

the

lead.

Timeout,

Philadelphia.

Anthony

Davis

makes

it

An

incredible

comeback

here

on

the

road.

Just

incredible

execution.

They

get

a

little

screen

by

Schroder,

who

delivered

the

ball

to

LeBron.

What

a

pass.

What

a

finish.

So

the

play

started,

Mike,

with

Schroder

receiving

the

inbound

pass.

Then

he

goes

and

sets

a

corner

screen

for

Anthony

Davis.

Joel

Embiid

is

the

big,

seven

feet

trying

to

contend

with

that.

And

the

pass

is

perfectly

placed

by

LeBron

James.

Danny

Green

reaching

and

slapping

instead

of

sort

of

pinching

in,

and

Anthony

Davis,

It's

championship

execution.

They

never

quit,

and

they

kept

executing,

Mike.

straight

points,

a

run.

This

is

the

Lakers'

first

lead

since

the

first

quarter.

Green

will

inbound.

Simmons,

Curry,

Harris,

and

Embiid,

the

starting

five

for

Philadelphia.

Embiid

trying

to

get

free,

trying

to

draw

a

foul.

Curry

has

it.

Shot

clock

is

off,

down

to

eight

seconds.

Now

Harris.

Harris

against

Caruso.

On

the

drive.

Pull-up

jumper.

It's

good.

Tobias

Harris

sinks

it

with

seconds

remaining.

Lakers

are

out

of

timeouts.

Caruso

to

Davis.

Davis

struggling.

Throws

it

up

at

the

basket.

And

it's

over.

Oh,

a

thrilling

finish

here

in

Philadelphia

as

the

Sixers

blow

a

fourth-quarter

lead

until

Tobias

Harris

puts

in

the

game-winner.

Harris

with

points

on

of

And

the

Sixers

with

a

big

victory.

Disappointing

loss

for

the

Lakers

as

they

lose

their

first

road

game

of

the

season.

Two

of

the

NBA's

elites

battling,

Doris.

Yeah,

Alex

Caruso

is

an

excellent

defensive

player.

Seth

Curry

delivers

the

ball.

You're

in

the

middle

of

the

floor.

So

one-on-one,

you've

got

greater

size,

able

to

get

enough

separation.

And

a

pretty

shot

by

a

guy

who's

been

in

a

tremendous

shooting

groove.

Again,

with

Doc

Rivers,

the

Clippers

love

playing

for

him.

And

here

in

Philadelphia,

It's

been

a

terrific

season.

points.

rebounds.

And

the

game-winner,

as

the

Sixers

were

able

to

get

the

victory.

Harris

capped

off

another

good

night.

points

for

Joel

Embiid

as

well.

2021.01.27.LAL@PHI.720pier.ru.