The best individual matchup on Wednesday's seven-game NBA schedule is Philadelphia and Joel Embiid visiting New Orleans and Zion Williamson in a collision of big man star power. The spread has dropped to 76ers -1.5 on the SportsLine consensus because Pelicans guard CJ McCollum says he will return from injury and is now probable.
It's only the third meeting between Embiid and Williamson, in part because their teams only play twice per season, and because Williamson has missed so much time as a pro with career injuries or maintenance days. He's missed three games this year and the Pelicans are 1-2 without him, but Wiliamson will play tonight. The former No. 1 overall pick is having a fine season, averaging 23.4 points on 54.8% shooting, 5.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game.
The 6-foot-7, 285-pounder ranks second in the league in restricted zone field goals per game, averaging 7.1 on the season while shooting 67.8% near the basket. Williamson is also averaging 18.4 points in the paint, which ranks second in the NBA. He and Embiid will bump into each other plenty down low.
McCollum, averaging 21.7 points, 5.7 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game, has been out since Nov. 4 with a partially collapsed lung and cracked rib. He announced on his podcast, "The CJ McCollum Show," that he intends to play Wednesday. He was upgraded to questionable Tuesday and received a probable tag on Wednesday. One huge issue so far for the 9-9 Pelicans has been a lack of 3-point shooting, and McCollum was converting those at 38.0% rate on 8.3 attempts per game.
Presuming he does play, it will only be the fourth game this season in which New Orleans' big three of Williamson, McCollum and Brandon Ingram all take the court. They only played 10 games together in 2022-23 but had a combined plus-6 rating. New Orleans' ideal starting lineup of the three stars, Herbert Jones and Jonas Valanciunas is 2-1 this year.
Could this be something of a trap game for Philly as it starts a road trip? The Sixers embarrassed the Lakers on Monday by a 138-94 score, handing LeBron James the worst loss of his career. Also note that Philadelphia has a much bigger game on Friday at hated rival Boston – I'm taking the points on Wednesday.
Embiid, who is a +650 third favorite to repeat as NBA MVP, had 30 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists vs. the Lakers, his sixth career triple-double and first this season. He now has four 30-point triple-doubles, tied with Charles Barkley for second most in Sixers history behind Wilt Chamberlain (15). Embiid leads the NBA in scoring at 32.0 PPG (although his shooting is down this season to 49.8%) and adding 11.3 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game.
In the three career matchups against Embiid, Williamson is averaging 33.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.7 assists. His over/under points + rebounds + assists number Wednesday is 34.5. Embiid is averaging 31.0 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists in the three games and has a PRA of 49.5. His O/U point total is 32.5.
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