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It’s no secret that Jimmy Butler and Joel Embiid share a strong bond from their time playing together on the Sixers. The Miami Heat star has publicly voiced his desire to go up against Embiid in the Eastern Conference semifinals. He wants Philly’s best effort.
After Miami’s 119-103 win in Game 2, Butler once again lobbied for the return of a guy “who I call the MVP.” Embiid will be re-evaluated by team doctors when the Sixers get back to Philadelphia. Many are optimistic that Embiid will suit up in Game 3, including his former teammate.
“Yup, I don’t see why not,” Butler told reporters on Wednesday night. “If he can. Health is always first and you know that’s my guy. I want to compete against him. I really do. I think they’re a completely different team whenever he’s out there on the floor, both offensively and defensively, so we’re looking forward to that.”
The Sixers have struggled to replace Embiid, turning to a timeshare at the center spot. DeAndre Jordan (6 points, 5 rebounds in 13 minutes) got a second straight start in Game 2 before giving way to Paul Reed (4 points, 4 rebounds in 25 minutes). Neither guy can impact the game like Embiid can.
“Just how much attention that he’s going to draw from everybody on the floor, whether he’s on the perimeter, at the elbow, on the block,” Butler said about what Embiid adds to the Sixers. “And then what he does defensively for those guys is pretty incredible, too. I’m not a statistics guy or analytics but I can tell you that whenever he’s on the floor they’re a much better team. But like I said, I want him to get right because we want to play against who I call the MVP.”
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‘Real Hope’ Embiid Returns for Game 3
The Heat-Sixers series shifts to Philly for Game 3 on Friday at 7 p.m. Miami holds a commanding 2-0 lead but everyone knows a playoff series doesn’t really start until a team loses on their home court.
And all bets are off if Embiid takes the floor. Which is growing more and more likely. NBC Sports’ John Clark said there is “real hope” that Embiid plays in Game 3. And Doc Rivers told reporters that the Sixers’ big man is feeling “a lot better.”
Meanwhile, TNT sideline reporter Chris Haynes said there is “still no timetable on his return,” although he did provide some interesting insight on what Embiid has been dealing with. Tuesday was the first day that the 7-footer could use his cell phone due to the blinding glare on his injured eye socket.
“I was able to have a text message exchange with Joel Embiid and he told me he’s feeling better,” Haynes said prior to Game 2, “but he did kind of give me a little insight on what he’s going through. He said yesterday was the first day he was actually able to use his phone because the brightness of the phone was causing problems earlier. So he’s feeling better, still no timetable on his return. Doc Rivers said once they get back to Philly they’ll evaluate Embiid and go from there.”
Butler Addresses Heat Defense on James Harden
James Harden was supposed to carry the load for the Sixers during Embiid’s absence. It hasn’t gone exactly as planned there. Miami has thrown the kitchen sink at Harden, trapping him with constant switches on the defensive end while sticking PJ Tucker on him in key spots.
Harden finished with 20 points while going 6-for-15 from the field in Game 2. Butler was quick to praise the Heat for swarming the Sixers star guard and keeping him off the free-throw line which has been his bread and butter. Harden has gone 11-for-11 at the charity stripe in the first two games of the series.
“We’ve done a great job of just keeping him off the [free throw] line, and then just making every shot tough for him,” Butler said. “He’s a superstar. He’s going to make tough shots, but you can’t hang your head whenever he does. He’s been putting the ball in the basket for a very, very long time now and then they got [Tyrese] Maxey who’s doing it at an incredible level right now – getting to the cup, making the three, and getting to the free throw line – so we gotta be better on that and see if we can two in Philadelphia.”
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