Joel Embiid flexed his muscle as the Philadelphia 76ers knocked off the Brooklyn Nets 123-117 in a top-of-the-table Eastern Conference showdown on Wednesday night.
Embiid scored 39 points for the Philadelphia 76ers, while he also had 13 rebounds as they moved to a 38-17 record, a game clear of the Brooklyn Nets.
Brooklyn were without star duo Kevin Durant and James Harden, while Kyrie Irving returned after missing Tuesday’s win over the Minnesota Timberwolves for personal reasons.
Irving scored 37 points, while DeAndre Jordan had 14 rebounds, as the Nets fought back from a significant deficit to almost snatch victory.
Durant’s absence caught some by surprise, having played on Tuesday against the Timberwolves, but the Nets opted to rest him.
Elsewhere on a busy Wednesday in the NBA, the Los Angeles Clippers continued their winning run of form with a tight 100-98 victory over the Detroit Pistons.
Reggie Jackson scored 29 points, while Ivica Zubac had a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds with Kawhi Leonard absent.
Stephen Curry dominated again with 42 points against the struggling Oklahoma City Thunder as the Golden State Warriors won 147-109.
Draymond Green had a rare triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists for the Warriors.
The Milwaukee Bucks won without Giannis Antetokounmpo with Khris Middleton scoring 27 points with eight rebounds and seven assists in a 130-105 win over the Timberwolves.
