Getty Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns and Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers.
What a difference that one week can make, especially for the Philadelphia 76ers. After peeling off nine straight wins recently, the Sixers have fallen to 1-3 in their last four, including two straight losses away to the Warriors on Friday and the Suns on Saturday.
James Harden‘s absence has been felt mightily. The Sixers are 23rd in assists, 24th in scoring, and 21st in offensive efficiency without its leading playmaker.
On Saturday, Joel Embiid stepped up admirably, finishing with 28 points and 10 rebounds in the Sixers’ 120-105 loss to Phoenix. Those numbers, huge for anyone else, are rather tame for the former Jayhawk who is fresh off a ten-game streak of 30 or more points.
After the game, Suns skipper Monty Williams praised Embiid and his team’s ability to contain the Sixers star.
“I think it was huge for sure because nobody does it better than Jo (Joel Embiid),” Williams said, per the Jump View YouTube channel. “I mean he’s big, he’s mobile, he can draw contact and finish and you have to just move on to the next play.”
Up next, the Sixers face the Denver Nuggets and Embiid’s MVP rival Nikola Jokic. All eyes will be on the contest, as a strong showing from either player could go a long way in deciding who is named this season’s Most Valuable Player.
Monty Williams Calls Out Tyrese Maxey After Suns Beat 76ers
Embiid wasn’t alone in his effort on Saturday.
Tyrese Maxey stepped up to the plate in a big way, finishing with a game-high 37 points, including going seven-of-11 from deep.
Williams noted Maxey’s big night while also breathing a sigh of relief that his team didn’t let anyone else get hot.
“If you think about their team and how they shoot and score the ball, to hold these guys to 105, I mean that’s a huge accomplishment for us. I thought we got timely stops tonight. I mean Maxey was shooting the ball well but nobody else got loose and that was huge. Again, coming off of a back-to-back, and again, our best offense is a defensive stop.”
While Embiid has deservedly drawn much attention for the Sixers’ recent strong form, Maxey hasn’t been far behind him in terms of reliability.
The former Kentucky Wildcat is shooting 53% from three over his last 15 games at a clip of seven attempts per game. His 23 points over that stretch have been equally as important.
Bismack Biyombo Sounds Off After Suns Win
For the Suns, the player of the game was no doubt Bismack Biyombo. The big man finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds, an impressive performance considering his assignment.
After the game, Biyombo praised his teammates for the joint effort in containing Embiid.
“Thank God everything kind of worked out for us,” Biyombo said after the game, per USA Today. “We were really focused on helping out one another. I think everyone did a good job. Our second unit was able to sustain us, T.J. Warren played extremely great, Terrence Ross played extremely great, Jock, Cameron Payne. Just play through each other and try to make sure we can maintain that energy.”
But Biyombo also kept it real, noting that Embiid is a one-of-one challenge to guard.
“Obviously, Joel is a great player. I think we tried to throw him different looks the whole night. Obviously, I had to guard him. When you play a player like that, it is always a team effort.”