Teams going in opposite directions
PHILADELPHIA — As if there were a need for another example of the vast difference between the seasons of the Rockets and 76ers, the final split seconds of their most recent games brought vivid, stunning reminders.
The Rockets arrive in Philadelphia after consecutive losses determined with three-tenths of a second left when the Kings’ DeAaron Fox drained free throws in a two-point win in Houston and Jimmy Butler slammed home an alleyoop for the win in Miami. The Sixers come home after a Nets 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie was taken off the board when replays showed the ball on Spencer Dinwiddie’s fingertips as time ran off.
The difference between the teams is greater than their disparate fortunes at the buzzer this weekend, or even that the Sixers are 7-3 in their past 10 games while the Rockets are 3-7, or that the Sixers are third in the Eastern Conference while the Rockets have the worst record in the NBA.
The Sixers, fortified at the trade deadline by the addition of Jalen McDaniels, are a championship contender, while the Rockets dealt Eric Gordon as they careen toward the best lottery odds possible.
The Rockets won the first meeting this season, topping the Sixers 132-123 in double overtime. But the Rockets are just 5-23 on the road, having lost 10 of their last 11 away from home. They have lost their past three games in Philadelphia, where the 76ers are 21-8.
Here are five things to watch in Monday’s game:
You again?
James Harden will have his second consecutive game against one of his former teams, though meetings with the Rockets have come often enough that some of the novelty might have worn off, at least compared to Saturday’s game against the Nets, his first in Brooklyn since leaving town.
Harden had a solid if not spectacular game by his standards, scoring 29 points with six rebounds and six assists amid the Brooklyn jeers.
Harden struggled in his first game with the Sixers against the Rockets, scoring 21 points but making just four of 19 shots with seven assists and seven turnovers. He was 4-of-16 with eight assists and eight turnovers against the Rockets last season while still with the Nets.
With the Sixers, he has looked to be a playmaker before a scorer and has not come close to his scoring with the Rockets, averaging 22.5 points per game, his fewest since he was a sixth man with the Oklahoma City Thunder. But he leads the NBA in assists, averaging 10.8 per game, his most since he averaged 11.2 with the Rockets in 2016-17.
His 12 games (in 39 games played) with 20 points, 10 assists and five rebounds are the most for a Sixers player since Wilt Chamberlain in 1966-67.
The 15.9 points per game Harden has averaged in his career against the Rockets is by far his fewest against any opponent, but those 16 games include three years as the Thunder’s sixth man and none from his nine seasons averaging 29.6 points with the Rockets.
Big man battle
Rockets center Alperen Sengun has often said he likes playing against the league’s bigger centers. Few come bigger, or more talented, than the Sixers’ Joel Embiid.
Sengun might like those matchups because it frees him from the sort of double-teams he has seen lately. The Sixers do not send Embiid help inside. Even the Heat, with one of the best defensive centers in the league to anchor their defense in Bam Adebayo, kept Sengun surrounded, and he made just three of nine shots with four turnovers.
Sengun has not attempted more than 11 shots in his past seven games, averaging 14.3 points in that stretch. He had averaged 14 shots, scoring 23.6 points per game, in his previous five games.
In his first meeting with Embiid and the Sixers this season, Sengun scored eight points with eight rebounds in 34.4 minutes. Embiid scored 39 points but fouled out and did not play in the second overtime.
While Harden leads the NBA in assists, Embiid is the top scorer, averaging a career-high 33.4 points.
Inconsistent offense
After one game spent knocking off rust following his return from a calf injury, Jalen Green had his shot going for a pair of games against the Kings. He averaged 34 points on 55.8 percent shooting, making 11 of 20 3-pointers in those games. But Friday in Miami, he missed all nine of his 3s and went 5-of-19, scoring 11 points.
Jabari Smith Jr. made eight of 16 shots against the Heat, scoring 22 points. But he had not topped 14 points in any of his previous 11 games. He had made just two of 11 3s in his previous three games, then made his first three Friday against the Heat. Smith missed his remaining six attempts and is making just 21.5 percent since the start of the new year.
Green had a mixed bag of a game against the 76ers, making nine of 20 shots to score 20 points with seven assists but missed all seven of his 3-point attempts. Smith had 16 points with 11 rebounds, making three of six 3-pointers.
The Rockets likely will need both to find their shots, though it has been a rarity to have both on target simultaneously.
Familiar faces
With the Rockets’ trade of Eric Gordon on Thursday, the 76ers have more of Harden’s Rockets teammates than the Rockets do. They have very different roles.
P.J. Tucker starts but rarely shoots, attempting just 2.9 shots per game, the fewest of his career save a 17-game stint with the Raptors as a rookie in 2006-07. Danuel House Jr. and Montrezl Harrell have fallen out of the rotation.
But De’Anthony Melton, who was drafted by the Rockets but traded before his rookie season, has remained a starter even after Tyrese Maxey returned from an earlyseason foot injury, averaging 10.7 points and making 40.1 percent of his 3s.
And new faces
The Rockets’ trade deadline acquisitions, wing Justin Holiday and center Frank Kaminsky, did not play in Miami on Friday, having flown into town that day in time to attend shootaround. Rockets coach Stephen Silas said “both will be integrated into what we’re doing.”
Though their positions are relatively crowded — neither will be confused for a point guard, where Kevin Porter Jr. remains out — they could get their most significant playing time since Kaminsky played 14 minutes for the Hawks on Jan. 11.