Friday night’s game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Clippers had the chance to be full of storylines: the league’s top-ranked offense against the second-best defense, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons versus Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, with Doc Rivers coaching against his former team and Ty Lue going up against his mentor.
But most importantly the game featured two legitimate contenders, and perhaps even a preview of the Finals. But by the time the game tipped off, the starting lineups didn’t look like what we would expect they would if these two teams did face off for the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
