GRADES: Toronto Raptors 107, Philadelphia 76ers 95
By Sam Coltrane
The Philadelphia 76ers fall on the road to the Toronto Raptors behind a strong performance from Fred VanVleet as Josh Richardson leaves early with hamstring soreness.
Josh Richardson left the game only four minutes into the action with a sore left hamstring. The team immediately ruled him out for the remainder of the game.
Despite the injury, the Philadelphia 76ers came out of the gate strong. They had the lead, 16-13, with 6:31 to play before a 13-3 run extended their lead to 29-16. Philadelphia ended the first quarter leading Toronto 35-26.
As the second unit took over for Philadelphia, their offense struggled to generate any easy looks. Toronto dominated the second quarter and held Philadelphia in check to the tune of only 15 points. The teams went into the locker rooms at the half tied at 50.
Philadelphia came out strong in the first six minutes of the second half opening on a 16-6 run. It was all Toronto from there on out. Toronto proceeded to outscore Philadelphia 51-29 the rest of the way.
Two VanVleet threes sandwiched between two VanVleet assists helped Toronto close the quarter on a 10-0 run and give them a 76-72 lead.
The fourth quarter was a microcosm of Philadelphia’s season. They predominately failed to generate consistent offense and saw a nearly four-minute stretch without scoring before the game was out of hand.
B. <strong>40 mins | 22 pts | 6 reb | 4 ast | 1 stl | 2 blk | 1 TO | 7-18 FG | 4-10 3PT| 4-5 FT | 3 PF | -9 |</strong><p>Harris played a strong game and has begun to come into his role. He displays a good balance on offense functioning as a fulcrum when Simmons can’t break out into transition. He has shown an ability to initiate offense in the half court and spread the floor while providing serviceable defense. It wasn’t a particularly strong showing, but it was the type of game that highlights Harris’ comfortability.</p>. PF. Philadelphia 76ers. TOBIAS HARRIS
PG. Philadelphia 76ers. BEN SIMMONS. B-. <strong>37 mins | 17 pts | 10 reb | 8 ast | 2 stl | 0 blk | 8 TO | 5-7 FG | 0-0 3PT| 7-9 FT | 3 PF | -14 |</strong><p>Torn. Part of me wants to give Simmons a strong grade for his near triple-double, 17 points on seven shots, and his often underappreciated defense. Yet, he disappeared in the fourth quarter and had eight turnovers. A team worse -14 drops his grade and fans are eager to see him shoot (talked about enough) and attack in the fourth. Another game goes by without results.</p>
C. <strong>36 mins | 7 pts | 10 reb | 7 ast | 2 stl | 0 blk | 0 TO | 3-11 FG | 1-6 3PT| 0-0 FT | 0 PF | -6 |</strong><p>Horford continues to prove just how valuable he is… just in a different uniform. He struggled shooting but displayed strong playmaking and defense. Horford’s game was supposed to be offered the potential to flourish without Embiid. However, the offense remains feeling clunky with Simmons outside of the dunkers spot alongside Horford. It isn’t necessarily his fault, but the fit remains tenuous at best.</p>. C. Philadelphia 76ers. AL HORFORD
SG. Philadelphia 76ers. FURKAN KORKMAZ. B+. <strong>27 mins | 17 pts | 2 reb | 1 ast | 0 stl | 2 blk | 0 TO | 6-13 FG | 4-8 3PT| 1-2 FT | 4 PF | -2 |</strong><p>Korkmaz helped to spread the floor and hit a nice floater in the paint when he was run-off the three-point line. His offense has expanded and should be offered more of an opportunity to flourish with Richardson sidelined. What improved Korkmaz grade was his defense. He had two blocks and rotated aggressively all-night making the right switches.</p>
B. <strong>27 mins | 13 pts | 2 reb | 0 ast | 2 stl | 0 blk | 2 TO | 5-12 FG | 3-9 3PT| 0-0 FT | 5 PF | -11 |</strong><p>Thybulle is becoming must-watch television for any coach trying to highlight effort and tenacity on defense. He is heady, quick, and endlessly hustles. If he can continue to provide halfway decent offense, then he will force Brett Brown’s hand for playing time come the postseason.</p>. SF. Philadelphia 76ers. MATISSE THYBULLE
Next. Simmons finding his rhythm in Embiid's absence. dark
Philadelphia will likely be working to replace two starters as they host the Los Angeles Lakers on ABC primetime, Saturday.