Without LeBron, the 76ers Climb Out of a 17-Point Hole to Beat the Raptors, 123-112, for Win No. 10

The Philadelphia 76ers did not have LeBron James on Thursday night, and for most of the first quarter it looked as if they might not have much of anything. Then they found their footing, wore down the Toronto Raptors over the middle two quarters and pulled away late for a 123-112 win, their 10th of the young season.

Tyrese Maxey led the way with 27 points, eight assists and two steals, Joel Embiid added 20 points and two blocks, and Jaylen Brown chipped in 18 points and six rebounds as Philadelphia improved to 10-3. Toronto fell to 5-7 and has now lost three games in a row.

James sat out for what Bleacher Report described as lower back and sciatica management, and the Raptors were missing two of their biggest names as well, playing with no Scottie Barnes or Kawhi Leonard in the lineup. VAVEL's pre-game report had listed Barnes with a groin injury and Leonard with a knee problem.

Toronto came out flying. The Raptors opened the game on a 12-0 run, and after Philadelphia answered, they ripped off another 14 straight points to build a 17-point lead with under two minutes left in the first quarter, according to Philly Sports Reports. The Sixers trailed by as many as 17 before they began to rally.

The comeback was built on depth. Philadelphia won both the second and third quarters by a 36-27 margin, and the teams went to halftime tied at 60. From there the game became a heavyweight bout: there were 25 lead changes, and the score was tied at nine different points. With the game knotted at 85 in the third quarter, the Sixers went on an 11-2 run to carry a 96-87 lead into the fourth.

Toronto did not go quietly. The Raptors cut the deficit to single digits in the final period, and after Brown and VJ Edgecombe pushed the lead back to 13, a Jamison Battle three-pointer and a Jakob Poeltl basket trimmed it to six. Philadelphia answered with three-pointers from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Anfernee Simons and two Embiid baskets, stretching the margin to 15 with under two minutes to play before coach Nick Nurse emptied his bench.

The box score tells the story of a team that won together. Edgecombe filled every column with 15 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and three steals. Simons scored 17 points, Caldwell-Pope added 11 points and five assists, and Jabari Walker had nine points and eight rebounds. Simons, Walker and Caldwell-Pope combined to shoot 9-for-13 from three-point range off the bench.

Toronto got a monster night from RJ Barrett, who carried the load with 31 points, 14 rebounds and five assists. Immanuel Quickley scored 26 points with six assists, Collin Murray-Boyles had 14 points and five blocks, and Battle added 13. Without Barnes and Leonard, though, the Raptors ran out of answers once Philadelphia's second unit got hot.

This was the kind of game good teams find a way to win. The Sixers had dropped two of their previous three, including an NBA Cup game against Cleveland and a home loss to Boston. Falling behind by 17 at home without one of the game's all-time greats in uniform could easily have turned into a third loss in four games. Instead, Philadelphia leaned on its stars and its role players alike, and nobody had to play hero.

There is something old-fashioned and admirable about that. A roster built around big names still has to share the ball, defend and trust the man coming off the bench to knock down an open shot. On Thursday the Sixers did all three, and the result is a 10-3 record that has them second in the Atlantic Division, with a 5-2 mark at home and 5-1 on the road.

The questions now are mostly about health. Philadelphia will want James back and fresh for the long haul, and Embiid's availability is always worth watching; VAVEL's pre-game report had listed him as day-to-day with a sore foot before he suited up Thursday. For Toronto, Barrett and Quickley are doing their part, but the Raptors need their stars back to stop the slide.

The 76ers stay home to host the Indiana Pacers on Sunday at 1 p.m. Eastern, while the Raptors return to Toronto to host the New York Knicks on Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern.