Sixers take on the Brooklyn team now without Kevin Durant

Tonight was meant to be a big test for the first-place Philadelphia 76ers, against a Brooklyn Nets team many have now dubbed the frontrunner to exit the Eastern Conference following the acquisition of All-NBA guard James Harden. Alas, we won’t be seeing the new Big 3 of Brooklyn’s Harden, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant in action, as Durant won’t be with the team after a strange streak of events yesterday.

After a Durant associate rendered a COVID-19 test inconclusive, the Nets star was excluded from the starting lineup for Friday night’s game against Toronto. He was then cleared to play and entered the game at the end of the first quarter, only to be taken out in the third quarter when another test from his partner came back positive. Durant was not happy.

The way the NBA is proceeding here does not make sense. Why was Durant allowed into the game if the league was still waiting for another test to come back? How could no one else in the Nets be considered close contact after being in the locker room and on the pitch with them? I should mention that Durant tested positive for the virus last March and already had to go through a quarantine period earlier this season due to exposure to someone else who had tested positive.

Putting all this madness aside, the league seems content to throw caution to the wind and plow, so this game stays on track. The Sixers are expected to have Ben Simmons back on the lineup after missing Thursday night’s loss due to calf strain. His presence should help tremendously as Philadelphia tries to contain the star duo of Harden and Irving. The Sixers’ struggles to defend talented guards are well documented at this point, and Kyrie and the Beard is basically as difficult a task as it gets.

If the Sixers are to win tonight, it will likely be thanks to their ability to fight off the Brooklyn offense. The Nets have the fifth-worst defensive rating in the NBA (113.4) and have given up at least 120 points in five straight games (going 3-2 in that streak). Having traded Jarrett Allen as part of the Harden deal, Brooklyn’s central rotation consists of a DeAndre Jordan and Jeff Green in the ball. Assuming his knee is good after the first quarter scare against Portland, there’s honestly no better situation for Joel Embiid to finally put a 50 spot on the scoreboard. We could actually see old friend Norvel Pelle speak up for Brooklyn just to use his six fouls.

While Durant’s absence means we won’t be able to put a definitive end to who should be the Eastern Conference favorite tonight, it’s still an important game for the Sixers. Erase the memory of Thursday’s extremely lackluster performance and prove that you have some semblance of a plan on how to deal with Harden and Kyrie together on the pitch. Let’s prove that Philadelphia is not just the team with the best record in the conference, but a real contender.

WHO: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Brooklyn Nets
When: 8:00 pm ET
Or: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Listen: 97.5 The Fanatic
To follow: @Liberty_Ballers

Injuries:

Philadelphia Cream: Joel Embiid – questionable (knee); Mike Scott – out (knee); Ben Simmons – probable (calf); Seth Curry – questionable (disease)
Brooklyn: Kevin Durant – absent (medical protocols); Tyler Johnson – absent (medical protocols); Spencer Dinwiddie – out (knee); Nicolas Claxton – outside (knee)

Update: Now Kevin Durant has been upgraded to questionable (how ???) and Kyrie Irving is out with a sprained finger.