![]() ![]() For Embiid, however, it’s been a consistent trend that has been developing all season, and one that is backed up by video evidence. It’s a combination of physical skills and mental wherewithal that you don’t frequently find in a 22-year-old, 7-foot-2 center.īut those stats, and even those athletic feats, can sometimes be noisy, rare glimpses of potential not capable of being sustained over the course of an 82 game season. Just in that game against New Orleans, Embiid showed the ability to control the glass defensively, rotate from the weakside to meet, and best, Anthony Davis at the rim, switch onto Buddy Hield and force an airball, trap Langston Galloway 30 feet from the basket, and also switch on to Galloway later in the game to block a three-point attempt. With Embiid on the court the Pelicans shot 53.8 percent in the restricted area, which jumped all the way up to 61.9 percent when he was on the bench. They collected 26.9 percent of their misses when Embiid was sitting compared to just 20 percent when the 7-foot-2 rookie was there to clean the defensive glass. When Embiid was in the game, the Pelicans committed turnovers on 21 percent of their offensive possessions, but did so just 4.2 percent of the time when Embiid was on the bench. That jumped to 103.9 when Embiid was on the bench. When Embiid was in the game, the Pelicans scored 82.1 points per 100 possessions. It was as if two different games were being played, with two different strategies by the opponent based solely on the availability of one Joel Hans Embiid. It also included a team-high +27 in the plus-minus, a fact that head coach Brett Brown was quick to point out after the game, with the Sixers outscoring the Pelicans 66-39 during the 27 minutes Embiid was on the court. The first indication of Embiid’s enormous impact in that Pelicans game show up in the rest of his box score, which included 4 blocks, 3 steals, and 2 assists. And when you go beyond the surface layer the trends that have been established over the course of this young season are pretty exciting to think about. Yet Embiid’s past two games were some of the best games he’s played this year, despite the offensive struggles. It’s a very temporary setback for a player oozing with two-way potential. In many ways this is notable not because it’s happening to Embiid, but because it took so long for him to really look like the inexperienced rookie that he is. Had the Sixers played a perfect game, maybe they could have overcome that duo's offensive fireworks.īut they didn't play a perfect game, and they left New Orleans with a loss.Over his last two games Embiid has struggled offensively for really the first time in his NBA career, shooting just 33.3 percent from the field, forcing shots, and, at times, slow to react to the double teams being thrown his way. This night clearly belonged to Zion's bulldozing drives into the lane and McCollum's sniper-scope precision. It may not have mattered had he played better. It didn't help that James Harden had a particularly odd game, offering up a 20-point, 10-assist double-double but also adding seven turnovers on the evening, and he only attempted eight shots from the field. Some rust was to be expected, however, after missing over a month. The bad news was that he struggled in his return, coming off the bench to post just nine points on 4-of-10 shooting from the field in 19 minutes. The good news for the Sixers was that star guard Tyrese Maxey returned after a lengthy layoff. It was an incredibly impressive offensive showing from the Pelicans (23-12), especially without Brandon Ingram available because of a toe injury.įor the Sixers (20-14), meanwhile, it was a second straight loss after an impressive eight-game winning streak. Amy Fadool Kane I mean CJ McCollum with a career high 11 threes. ![]()
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