Embiid leads 76ers over James’ Lakers

Joel Embiid had 37 points and 14 rebounds, Tobias Harris scored 22 points in his second game with Philadelphia, and the new-look 76ers beat Lebron James and the Los Angeles Lakers 143-120 on Sunday in Philadelphia.

JJ Redick added 21 points for the Sixers, who have won two straight after acquiring Harris and four others at Thursday’s trade deadline. Jimmy Butler finished with 15 points in front of a packed Philly crowd that brought a playoff-like feel to the nationally televised game.

“The East better watch out,” Lakers president Magic Johnson said. “This is a stacked team.”

Kyle Kuzma led the Lakers with 39 points while James had 18 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.

James was facing Philadelphia for the first time since the Sixers made a big push to sign the superstar as a free agent last summer. He and Kuzma both missed the last matchup with Philly on Jan. 29, which the Sixers won 121-105.

Fresh off a buzzerbeating win in Boston, the Lakers shot nearly 60 percent and scored 40 points in the first quarter. But fueled by Redick’s four-point play, the Sixers closed the first half on a 19-6 run to take a 76-67 lead into halftime. Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons rises for a shot and is fouled by Los Angeles’ Lebron James during Sunday’s game.

Philadelphia’s lead ballooned to 109-94 at the end of the third quarter after T.J. Mcconnell’s 3-pointer in the closing seconds. The Sixers ran away with the game from there while gleeful fans chanted “Kobe’s better” at James.

WARRIORS 120, HEAT 118: Kevin Durant scored 39 points and Demarcus Cousins made two free throws with 5.4 seconds to play that helped Golden State cap a comeback from a 19-point deficit in the first quarter to beat Miami. Cousins rebounded a missed 3-pointer by Durant and drew a foul. Klay Thompson scored 29

points and Stephen Curry added 25 for Golden State. Josh Richardson helped shoot Miami to the big early lead and finished with a career-high 37 points with help from eight 3-pointers. MAVERICKS 102, TRAIL BLAZERS 101: Luka Doncic scored 28 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. had 24 and Dallas erased a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat Portland. Doncic also had nine rebounds and six assists. Damian Lillard scored 21 of his 30 points in the last half of the third quarter to help the Blazers build a lead that grew to 96-81 early in the fourth before the Mavericks mounted their rally.