3 biggest takeaways for Sixers following latest loss to Rockets

The Philadelphia 76ers fell short to the Houston Rockets on Thursday night 113-102 as they dropped their third straight at a critical time on the NBA calendar. The loss dropped Philadelphia two games back of the Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks for the sixth and final guaranteed playoff spot in the East and now a full game back of the Orlando Magic for the No. 7 seed.

With Joel Embiid sidelined due to appendicitis surgery, Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 23 points and five assists, VJ Edgecombe had 21 points, eight assists, and six rebounds, Quentin Grimes had 20 off the bench, and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 16 points. Paul George finished with seven points and four rebounds.

Here are the three biggest takeaways from the loss to the Rockets: Turnover problems The Sixers had a lot of trouble taking care of the ball in this one. Philadelphia had six turnovers in the first quarter, alone, leading to 12 quick Rockets points. They committed another five turnovers in the second quarter as the Rockets converted those into eight more points.

George had four turnovers on the night while Maxey committed two turnovers as Philadelphia committed 16 turnovers as a team. The Sixers need those two to be the leaders of this team with Embiid sidelined for now. They have to be better to set the tone for Philadelphia.