The Charlotte Hornets have had several days to figure out a way to stop Tyrese Maxey, Paul George and the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Hornets had no answers for the Sixers’ stars earlier in the week but will give it another shot Friday when they visit Philadelphia.
Charlotte dropped a 121-108 decision to the Sixers on Monday as Maxey piled up 40 points, five assists, five rebounds and four steals and George added 33 points and eight assists. Both players made six 3-pointers as Philadelphia improved to 5-2 in its past seven games.
“I thought that Maxey and George did a really good job of trying to get to their spots,” Hornets coach Charles Lee said that night. “… And they hit a couple of tough ones. I think that kind of fueled them.”
Miles Bridges led Charlotte with 24 points, while LaMelo Ball had 15 points and 11 assists in a losing effort. Things did not improve for the Hornets on Thursday, as they fell 123-114 at Washington for their 11th loss in 12 games. Ball amassed 34 points and 13 assists against the Wizards.
Charlotte played Thursday without swingman Brandon Miller, who sprained his ankle in the game against the Sixers. Without Miller, one of the bright spots for the Hornets, was the play of center Mark Williams, who registered a season-high 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds in his sixth game of the campaign.
“I’m feeling better every game,” said Williams, who missed the first month of the season due to a foot injury. “Obviously if we were winning, it’d be better.”
While the Hornets are playing a back-to-back on Thursday and Friday, the Sixers have been resting since their win over Charlotte on Monday.
Joel Embiid missed that contest with a sinus fracture and is listed as questionable for the Friday affair. Lee believes his team will be ready either way.
“A ton,” Lee said when asked how much he can learn from the game against Philadelphia earlier this week. “Understanding obviously, it’s a lot of Maxey, it’s a lot of George. If Embiid plays, it will be a lot of him as well. (We need to understand) what are the things that we want to take away from each player — and (do) it for a whole game.”
Maxey and George have also battled injuries this season. George, in particular, has struggled to find a consistent rhythm after hyperextending his left knee twice over the past two months.
“He’s certainly moving a lot better,” Sixers coach Nick Nurse said. “He’s feeling a lot better. His athleticism is a lot better. All those things. So it’s all steps in the right direction.”
Another Philadelphia player who has played at less than full health this season is Caleb Martin, who has struggled with his shooting amid a shoulder injury. He missed the Monday contest and is out again on Friday.
Philadelphia also will be without rookie guard Jared McCain, who underwent knee surgery this week and is out indefinitely. That injury, plus the wobbly statuses of Embiid and Martin, puts more pressure on Maxey.
“For myself, I need to smile more and get back to being happy out there playing basketball, and I think I did that tonight,” Maxey said Monday. “I mean, I’m a happy person and I was happy with my teammates with how hard they played tonight.”
–Field Level Media
