By: Kylan Watson

Fresh off of losing to the Denver Nuggets over the weekend the Philadelphia 76ers travelled to Portland to face off with the Trailblazers. The Sixers are still very shorthanded but did get Tobias Harris back tonight. That did not matter to Portland though who used a third quarter offensive explosion to beat Philly 130-104.

The Sixers did not have it in this game as they started this game off colder than a freezer from beyond the arc, only making five/29 three-pointers in this contest. That was the biggest difference in this game the Trailblazers made seven more three-pointers (12/28) than Philly did. That gave them all the cushion they needed to beat a Sixers team that is being ravaged by the flu and a persistent injury bug that won’t stop biting. A positive development for the Sixers during this stretch is it seems Kelly Oubre Jr, Patrick Beverley, and Paul Reed have rediscovered their offensive prowess. The trio will be called on as they are vital back-ups for Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Tobias Harris. Their rediscovered offensive momentum has been big for the Sixers during this tough road trip. Obviously, they did not do enough in tonight’s contest to help the Sixers win. However, if they can use these increase offensive opportunities to come back to form for the second half of the season and into the playoffs, Philly will have a scoring punch off the bench that has been non-existent during the Joel Embiid era.

Unlike the Sixers the Trailblazers were hitting everything after being held to 20-points in the first quarter. A third quarter offensive explosion put this game away for a Trailblazers team that is just trying to stay afloat during their rebuilding period. The trio of Jerami Grant (27 points), Malcolm Brogdon (24 points), and Scoot Henderson (22 points) combined for 73 of the Blazers 130 points. The Sixers had no answers for either of them, Grant in particular was the main killer for Portland tonight. He found the bottom of the net early in this game and there was nothing the Sixers could do to cool him off.  He would rise up over the Sixers defenders and make his shots and it did not matter if they were wide-open or well contested, those possessions where he got shot opportunities all ended with the ball in the basket. He hit big shots to carry the Blazers over the finish line tonight.

It is a quick turn-around for Philly as they now prepare to face another team that has an explosive backcourt and three-point prowess in the Golden State Warriors. The Sixers will have to play better perimeter defense than they did tonight as they will see Stephen Curry who will be looking to feast on a tired squad who has to chase him for 48 minutes. They have to throw every long defender they have available if they want to limit him in today’s upcoming contest with the Warriors. Additionally, the Sixers have to find their stroke from the three-point line they are missing very makeable shots, and the shots have to start falling eventually. Not having Tyrese Maxey available does take away some three-point effectiveness for them. However, maybe they need to attack the paint more then to either create higher-percentage shots or get to the free-throw line and get their offensive prowess back that way. Without Embiid and Maxey someone has to step-up if they hope to keep up with the Warriors explosive offense. If the Sixers can implement these things into their gameplan they should be able to get their 30^th victory of the season.