Sixers vs. Celtics: 3 storylines to watch and how to stream the game

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The Sixers (24-14) can clinch their season series against the 25-10 Celtics and gain ground on Boston in the standings Thursday night.

Here are the essentials:

When: 7 p.m. ET with Sixers Pregame Live at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Wells Fargo Center 
Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Live stream: NBCSportsPhiladelphia.com and the NBC Sports MyTeams app

And here are three storylines to watch: 

Embiid’s absence 

Joel Embiid is out tonight after dislocating his left ringer finger Monday in the Sixers’ game vs. the Thunder.

He was brilliant the last time the Sixers played the Celtics, scoring 38 points and grabbing 13 rebounds on Dec. 12. Al Horford missed that game against his former team because of right knee soreness and right hamstring tightness, but he’ll step into Embiid’s starting center spot Thursday.

The Sixers are 3-4 this year without Embiid, including blowout losses to the Pacers on New Year’s Eve and to the Nets on Dec. 20. 

The rookie’s return 

The positive injury news for the Sixers is that rookie Matisse Thybulle will be available after missing the last seven games with a right knee injury.

Thybulle, who was quizzed regularly by Tobias Harris during his time away from the court, still leads rookies in steals. 

Since Thybulle’s last appearance, the Sixers have only forced 11.6 turnovers per game, 26th in the NBA during that span. 

Walker coming off first career ejection 

Kemba Walker’s first game back following a three-game absence because of the flu ended early. 

The Celtics’ guard was ejected Wednesday night for protesting what he felt was an illegal screen by San Antonio’s LaMarcus Aldridge. Boston started slow — a persistent problem — and struggled defensively in its loss to the Spurs, the team’s second straight.

The Sixers guarded Walker well last time he was in Philadelphia, holding him to 4 of 18 shooting on Opening Night. 



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