Getty Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons and center Joel Embiid
The relationship between Philadelphia 76ers stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons is as strong as ever, and the two had a bit of a moment after Tuesday’s win. Following the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Embiid and Simmons addressed the media and the All-Star big man was asked about his conditioning after missing time due to a sore knee.
Simmons whispered something to Embiid, who proceeded to answer “69 percent” with a completely straight face. His teammate was unable to hold it together, though, and as Dime shows, he attempted to leave the press conference while laughing.
Joel Embiid said his conditioning is at 69% and Ben Simmons walked out of the presser 😂😂 t.co/KnLS6T0O8O
Embiid asked where he was going and eventually got Simmons to come back over. From there, it appears the two held it together as they wrapped up the Q&A with reporters.
It’s apparent that the two young stars have seen their friendship continue to grow throughout the 2018-19 season. Now, their focus is on winning games and enjoying the moments after victories as well, which was obvious from the video above.
Ben Simmons Addresses His Future With Sixers, Joel Embiid
Simmons made a strong comment recently about the outlook for both himself and Embiid with the Sixers. It was brutally honest and involved the future of the two young stars and their focus on bringing championships to Philadelphia, as Bleacher Report detailed.
“You see a lot of guys from the past request trade sand things like that when you could’ve seen something special happen, and I think [Joel and II] remind ourselves that a lot. We want to stay here and win championships for the city.” Simmons stated.
This is music to the ears of Sixers fans, and the two players are fresh off All-Star appearances while posting superb numbers this season. Coming off a year in which Simmons won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award, he’s been even better in 2018-19, averaging 17.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game.
As far as Embiid goes, he’s put up numbers worthy of MVP consideration but has been unfortunately overshadowed by James Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Regardless, the 24-year-old is averaging 27.4 points, 13.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game while shooting 48.3 percent from the field.
Sixers’ Current Playoff Outlook
Following the 106-99 win over the Cavaliers, the Sixers moved into a tie with the Indiana Pacers for the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference. They’ve held the No. 4 seed for some time now, and both Philly and Indiana are two games ahead of the Boston Celtics for a first-round bye. If the Sixers are able to hold the No. 3 seed, they’ll almost certainly avoid Boston in the first round, which would be big.
The current outlook would set up a series against the Brooklyn Nets which would begin in Philly. Brooklyn holds a 36-33 record, but they sit 5.5 games back of the Celtics and have just a half-game edge on the Detroit Pistons for the No. 6 seed.
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