Sixers top Raptors, 114-99, in first game since James Harden trade

Tobias Harris jumped into the air near the right wing to knock the ball away, then took it all the way to the opposite end of the court for the dunk.

That sequence all but squashed the Toronto Raptors’ chances of making a comeback on the 76ers, who won 114-99 Thursday night in their first game since the blockbuster James Harden trade.

“We get ready and we have a job of a professional NBA player,” Harris said when asked if the Harden saga’s resolution finally allowed the Sixers for formally move forward. “We go out there and play basketball. It’s as simple as that.”

The Sixers (3-1) introduced their new players acquired in the trade — Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington, KJ Martin, and Marcus Morris — following Wednesday’s practice, though none of them got on the floor Thursday until Covington and Martin entered for the final minute with the outcome decided. Batum missed the game for personal reasons, while the other three went through extra work following their new team’s morning shootaround and sat on the bench. Coach Nick Nurse surmised that those players could be ready to make their Sixers debuts in Saturday’s high-profile home game against the Phoenix Suns.

Instead, the Sixers turned to familiar forces (and one newcomer) to beat the Raptors for the second time in three games.

Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid finished with 28 points — including a 12-of-13 mark from the free throw line — 13 rebounds and seven assists. Harris added an efficient 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting, to go with seven rebounds and three assists. Kelly Oubre Jr. also had 23 points on 5-of-6 from three-point range while stepping into a starting forward spot. Tyrese Maxey finished with 18 points and four assists.

“I look at that starting group that we had out there a night, and any one of them is capable of going for 25-plus [points],” Nurse said.

The Sixers entered the fourth quarter leading 90-77, then grew that advantage to 18 points when Furkan Korkmaz hit a floater in the period’s first minute. The Raptors got within 102-92 on a Scottie Barnes dunk with less than five minutes to play, but Embiid answered with his own slam before Harris’ swipe and score pushed that advantage back to 106-92.

The Sixers created some initial separation late in the first half, when Embiid converted an old-fashioned three-point play and Korkmaz (10 points on 4-of-7 shooting) followed with a transition dunk and corner three-pointer to put their team up, 56-47.

Following Saturday’s game against the Suns, the Sixers continue this five-game home stand with a Monday game against the Washington Wizards and a Wednesday showdown against the Boston Celtics.

» READ MORE: Sixers’ Paul Reed on James Harden’s departure: ‘I’m just happy he got somewhere he wanted to be’

With P.J. Tucker also going to the Clippers in the Harden deal, Oubre slid into the starting lineup. That could be a short-term solution, as Nurse said Wednesday that he might prefer Oubre — who entered Thursday averaging 19 points on 50% shooting through the Sixers’ first three games — as a bench spark.

But Oubre provided another scoring lift in the new role. His primary surge came in a 10-point third quarter, when his finish through a tough hit and two three-pointers late propelled the Sixers to their first double-digit lead. Then, he hit a pull-up three-pointer to squash a Raptors mini-rally in the fourth, and buried another deep shot to increase his team’s lead to 110-94 with less than three minutes to go.

“He’s competing at both ends,” Nurse said of Oubre. “I thought he made some kind of interesting plays tonight. When we kind of needed a little boost here and there, he made some plays to keep the momentum rolling our way or turning it back our way.”

Oubre also began Thursday’s outing hot, hitting a three-pointer in the game’s opening minute and then collecting a putback dunk. But he struggled to finish in the second quarter, before picking up his third foul prevented him from finishing the first half.

That opened the scoring-burst opportunity for Korkmaz, who was the first wing off the bench after playing in only one of the Sixers’ first three games. He then created another highlight while on the floor with Oubre late in the third, converting a reverse layup through contact to put the Sixers up by 13 points entering the final frame.

Jaden Springer also got seven first-half minutes, but did not re-enter again until garbage time. Danuel House Jr. did not play.

» READ MORE: James Harden explains why it didn’t work out with the Sixers: ‘They didn’t want me’

After acquiring a bundle of assets in the Harden trade, two players who have been floated by outsiders as targets for the Sixers’ next move were in town Thursday.

OG Anunoby, a superb perimeter defender who sometimes guarded the dynamic Maxey, totaled 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting (including a jumper at the first-quarter buzzer) and added four rebounds.

Pascal Siakam, a two-time All-Star, had a quiet offensive night, going 5-of-11 from the floor for 10 points to go along with three rebounds and six assists. Nurse credited Harris’ defense, particularly the way he made Siakam work for the ball and was stuck to him on every catch.

“We have a whole game plan for kind of how to make his looks harder on the floor,” Harris said. “But overall, just really being physical and getting into his space and living with certain shots that he takes.”