This was the third time the Bucks and 76ers met in the regular season and the Bucks won again. Giannis Antetokounmpo put down 31 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists by going 12-15 and burying two shots from the 3-point line.

By contrast, Joel Embiid was only 5-18 in field goals to get 17 points and 11 rebounds. At the beginning of the third quarter, Antetokounmpo finished a 3-point play over him and drew the fourth personal foul on the 76ers' center. It was right after that possession the Bucks launched a 33-14 run, turning the game into a foregone conclusion.

Judging by the box score, the 76ers lost on offense. It's hard to defeat the Bucks, the fourth-best rated offensive team in the league, when your team only has 98 points and 17 assists. The 76ers' one and only orchestrator Ben Simmons, no matter how annoying his lack of shooting range is, played less than five minutes before he quit suffering a lower back irritation. Without him, the 76ers' rough offense grew further difficult. For example, though the team led 10-2 in steals, they still trailed 31-23 in fast break points.

Usually the game would become more comforting for Embiid when Simmons does not play, but this time was different. Milwaukee prepared two strong seven-footers, Brook and Robin Lopez. Both of them are able to make Embiid work harder to score, not to mention that Embiid only played 29 minutes on the court because of foul trouble.

Simmons' absence hurt Philadelphia's defense as well. Without him, the team lost someone who's both fast and strong enough to tussle with Antetokounmpo. 33-year-old Al Horford was not able to defend the Greek Freak like he used to in the Boston Celtics. In Saturday's game, Antetokounmpo dodged Horford's defense for multiple times via his speed. Tobias Harris' defense was close to non-exist in front of Antetokounmpo. As a Philadelphia had no choice but to pick the old way: having Embiid wait for him under the rim.

The trick lost its mojo from the beginning as the Greek Freak drained two triples and five middle-range jumpers – four of them around the free throw line. Moreover, when Milwaukee sent George Hill to the court, the 33-year-old kept playing give-and-go with Antetokounmpo by using the latter's big threat as a distraction. Embiid must follow Antetokounmpo once he broke into the paint, leaving the rim totally vulnerable.

"Being the best player in the world, I just intend to keep coming out every single night and just play hard and trying to get wins and just go out and try to win a championship," Embiid said the above words after Philadelphia's win over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday. He certainly did not act like "the best player" on Saturday.

When asked about Embiid's remarks, Antetokounmpo gave a diplomatic response: "Every NBA player should feel like he's the best player. Who am I to tell him he's not the best player in the world? Who are we to tell him he's not the best player in the world? Everybody should feel that way."

However, then he added: "But at the end of the day, you've got to go on the court and – if you feel that way – you've got to show it."

Sacramento Kings 112-103 Los Angeles Clippers

This is the third straight loss and the fourth loss in five games for the Clippers. The team introduced Marcus Morris and Reggie Jackson – both were considered good signings – to improve their franchise and had expected something better than this.

Kawhi Leonard scored game-high 31 points but he's the only one in the Clippers' starting-lineup to reach double figures. Though Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell together got 40 points and 14 rebounds, neither were them able to help Leonard break the team's scoring drought in the fourth quarter. For the whole six minutes, the Clippers only scored two points via Leonard while watching the Kings seal the win with a 13-2 run.

By contrast, the Kings saw all five of their starters drop double-digit points and Kent Bazemore claim 23 off the bench. The team forced 19 turnovers by the Clippers and turned them to 24 points. In the back-court game, the Kings also concentrated on attacking the rim, one of the biggest weakness in the Clippers' defense and that gave them another 12-point lead (52-40).

We have talked way too much about the Clippers' over-reliance on isolation in offense, lack of qualified big man in defense and the team's thin chemistry. This was no more than a regular season game. There is no point making a big deal of it. However, there's one thing the Clippers might need to consider: perhaps they have focused too much on how to defeat LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, but forgot that there are other tough competitors in the Western Conference.

Other results on Saturday (home teams in bold):

Brooklyn Nets 115-86 Charlotte Hornets

Dallas Mavericks 107-111 Atlanta Hawks

Cleveland Cavaliers 105-124 Miami Heat

Phoenix Suns 112-104 Chicago Bulls

Houston Rockets 120-110 Utah Jazz