PHILADELPHIA – Joel Embiid had 39 points and 13 rebounds and the Philadelphia 76ers beat Brooklyn 123-117 on Wednesday night in an anticipated matchup that fizzled with the Nets missing their biggest stars.
The Sixers (38-17) moved into first place in the Eastern Conference in a game played without James Harden, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge.
With the Nets standouts hurt or just rested, the game had more of a preseason feel than a possible preview of the conference final this summer.
No matter, the Sixers moved back atop the standings and have the No. 1 seed in sight with just 17 games left this season. “It clearly would be nice to have,” Sixers coach Doc Rivers said. “It makes sense to try and have as many home games