Here is what you need to know before the Lakers head to the City of Brotherly Love to face the Philadelphia 76ers.
1) The King at the doorstep of history
LeBron James inched closer to surpassing a Laker legend with his 27-point performance Thursday night against the Nets.
The King is now 18 points away from overtaking Kobe Bryant and rising to the 3rd spot in the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
LBJ currently has 33,626 points in 1,241 games after being drafted 1st overall in the 2003 NBA Draft.
2) Lakers are the NBA’s road warriors
After sweeping both New York games earlier this week (Knicks and Nets), the Lakers became the first team in the NBA this season to reach 20 wins on the road.
L.A. currently owns the best record (20-4) away from home, an amazing feat that’s even more impressive considering they won a combined 30 road games the last 2 seasons.
Frank Vogel’s squad also has a 4.5 game lead on the next best team (Utah Jazz) in the Western Conference standings.
3) Sixers: wounded but extremely dangerous
Brett Brown’s Sixers came into the season as one of the main contenders in the Eastern Conference, but they’ve so far dealt with a good share of adversity.
They’re currently down two starters (Joel Embiid and Josh Richardson) and have fallen to 6th in the standings, yet they sit just 3.0 games back of the second spot.
A silver lining of sorts has been the level of play of Ben Simmons, who’s averaging 21.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 8.2 assists in 10 games in January, arguably the best stretch of his career.
Simmons is shooting 62.4% from the field and still has plenty of help in the form of Tobias Harris (19.2 points on 40.6% from beyond the arc in his last 10) and Al Horford (12.7 points and 7.2 boards in the same span). Keep an eye on rookie defensive menace Matisse Thybulle, averaging 3.2 stocks (steals + blocks) per game this month.
Injury Report
Lakers: Rajon Rondo (avulsion fracture, right ring finger) and Kyle Kuzma (sore left ankle) are probable. Anthony Davis (gluteus maximus contusion) and JaVale McGee (flu-like symptoms) are questionable.
Sixers: Joel Embiid (torn radial collateral ligament) and Josh Richardson (left hamstring strain) are out.
Tip-Off: 5:30 p.m. PT
TV: ABC
Radio: 710 ESPN and 1330 Tu Liga
Unis: Gold City
Location: Wells Fargo Center — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania