The stronger Sixers head south to face the Magic to start the road trip

The Philadelphia 76ers are currently 2-9 and are second to last in the Eastern Conference standings. Normally there would be a line at the Ben Franklin Bridge in this situation, but we’ve been distracted by the ascension of rookie Jared McCain. The former Duke Blue Devil is now the odds-on favorite to win Rookie of the Year, averaging 25.5 points over his last four games. In his first career start Wednesday against Cleveland, McCain dropped rookie career highs of 34 points and 10 assists, nearly leading the Sixers to the upset victory.

Tonight, as the Sixers take on the Orlando Magic, McCain will have some reinforcements. Both Joel Embiid and Paul George will be back in the lineup after sitting out back-to-back Wednesdays. The injury report is pretty clean by Philadelphia standards, with only Tyrese Maxey out with a strained right hamstring and Andre Drummond questionable with illness.

Meanwhile, the Magic have a pair of injuries with All-Star Paolo Banchero out with a torn oblique and big man Wendell Carter Jr. sitting due to plantar fasciitis. Rookie Tristan da Silva has moved into the starting lineup following Banchero’s injury, with Goga Bitadze and Mo Wagner sharing center duties with Carter on the sidelines. The man who has come up big, however, has been Mo’s brother, Franz Wagner. The University of Michigan German is averaging 27.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.8 steals over Orlando’s recent 4-0 stretch. The Magic are now 7-6 on the season, good enough for third in what passes for the Eastern Conference these days.

Tonight’s meeting is of course also an NBA Cup match. After Philadelphia’s loss to Knicks on tuesday the sixers have to win tonight or i hope you made cancelable reservations for las vegas. Here’s the Magic’s NBA Cup court as we’ll see tonight — gray certainly looks less eye-catching than a primary color being used:

Nick Nurse said the other day that George’s minutes restriction has been lifted, so we should probably expect four or five minutes more than his average of 29.2 in his first five games. I expect the team to still be a bit tentative with Embiid in what will be only his second game of the season. His conditioning was understandably not where it needed to be yet against the Knicks. Perhaps most intriguingly, how will this “feel-good” version of McCain play alongside the two veteran All-Stars? Will Nick Nurse keep him in the starting lineup for the second straight game? In this dismal start to the season, McCain has been the brightest of silverware. Perhaps with more hands on deck tonight, the Sixers can go for more than a moral victory.

Game details

WHO: Philadelphia 76ers vs Orlando Magic
When: 19:00 ET
Where: Kia Center, Orlando, FL
Clock: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Follow: @LibertyBallers