Gameday: Raptors @ 76ers, Mar. 20

The stars come to a head in Philadelphia. After the chaotic shot-making that became the book end to the Lakers and Raptors season series (the Lakers won’t make it to The Finals, where the Raptors will patiently await a Western rival) they’ll try to limit chaos, and fouls, against the 76ers.

Since arriving in Philly, James Harden has been the steady hand guiding the 76ers offense. This isn’t to say that he is their best offensive player, that’s Joel Embiid, but Harden has taken on a lot of the responsibility in organizing the framework of offensive possessions that feature Embiid.

The pairing between Harden & Embiid is tremendously difficult to guard, especially with the rising free throw rate across the league. A simple pick n’ roll between the two can break some of the best defenses, and that’s before you even progress to secondary reads, or second-side actions that may involve the absolutely rapid and star ascendant, Tyrese Maxey attacking compromised defenses. Tobias Harris can plug in for proper offensive production as well.

How the Raptors decide to guard the primary actions, the basic functions of the Philly offense will dictate a lot of Philadelphia’s shot diet. Might the Raptors start Precious Achiuwa, switch him onto Harden in screening actions with Embiid and dare him to make them pay? Achiuwa just forced LeBron James into continous fadeaways in single coverage. Would Harden take the bait instead of seeking Embiid’s immense size advantage? Hard to say, because he’s been one of the best facilitators league wide for some time now. If Embiid gets a post touch, do the Raptors dig from the wing? The middle? Both? We saw a mixture of coverages when these teams played on December 28th, but both rosters are vastly different because of health and trades that have been made.

For their part, the Raptors have advantages to exploit as well. At their best defensively, they should be able to throw bodies at drives, at Embiid, and scram-switch people out of trouble. How close to perfection can they come? We’ll see. Offensively, Pascal Siakam has risen to new heights. He has lifted the Raptors half court offense by a tremendous amount, and a lot of his shot-making comes without being dependent on getting to the rim. With Embiid lurking, the intermediate, short mid-range is an extremely valuable scoring outlet for Siakam. The 76ers don’t have many players that should be able to bother him in single coverage. If the 76ers try and get away with Embiid on Siakam, and have him play off him, the 3-point shot should be adequate punishment (he’s shooting over 40-percent over his last 20 games). Fred VanVleet has stretched his legs in the mid-range, Achiuwa is on a torrid stretch from deep, and Barnes is unstoppable. The Raptors have definitive routes to offense – especially if Gary Trent Jr. really has turned the corner.

If form is any indicator, if you believe the best teams ramp up as the season goes on? We’re looking at two of the five best teams in the East. It should be a blast.

Broadcast info

8:30 pm EST / TV: SN / Radio: Sportsnet 590