Getty Joel Embiid, Sixers
There were a few moments early in Wednesday night’s game where Joel Embiid appeared to be waving his right hand in pain. Add it to the growing list of ailments for the Philadelphia 76ers star: knee, hand, COVID-19. It never ends.
The newest injury happened in the first quarter against Boston after Enes Kanter Freedom – the Turkish big man changed his name to reflect his fight for freedom – hit him “pretty hard” in the right hand. Embiid told reporters he was in pain throughout the contest, especially when he was shooting free throws. That’s something to keep an eye on moving forward.
“It was pretty painful the rest of the way [after the first quarter], especially when I was shooting the ball in rhythm but it was fine,” Embiid said. “I could feel it most when I was shooting free throws and in between but hopefully it gets better.”
The 7-footer didn’t have the hand wrapped during his post-game press conference, but he did have jokes.
“That’s what happens when Freedom has too much Freedom from the refs,” Embiid said.
Rough night for Joel Embiid and the Sixers, who had a chance on the final possession.
Think Al Horford had this game circled on his calendar?
Embiid also admitted to still feeling lingering effects from a two-week battle with COVID-19 that kept him out for nine games. He returned on November 27 and scored 42 points in 45 minutes during a double-overtime loss to Minnesota. Obviously there was no minutes restriction in that one. Now the 280-pounder is dealing with the aftermath after the novel coronavirus attacked his body.
“I would never use it [COVID-19] as an excuse,” Embiid said, “but I think it’s going to take me a while to get back, especially legs and cardio and all that stuff. But every single day, I got to keep working hard and keep getting better.”
Joel Embiid opened up about his experience with COVID-19.
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It’s Always Something in Philadelphia
The Sixers held the top seed in the Eastern Conference for the first two weeks of the season. It’s been a rough ride since that 8-2 start, one filled with a COVID-19 outbreak and soft tissue injuries to key players. The starting five has only played eight games together. They are 4-4.
“We’re not even close to where we’re supposed to be,” Embiid said. “It starts with myself.”
Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, and Tyrese Maxey combined for 27 points on 10-41 shooting in last night’s loss to the Celtics
All 5 starters were a negative +/- rating
Embiid has seen this movie too many times during his six-year run in Philadelphia. It’s getting old, hopefully this year the Sixers can flip the script.
“This has been the story of my career in Philly,” Embiid said. “It feels like every single time we have something good going on, something always seems to happen or show up. Whether it’s distractions or injuries, and last year we had COVID, this year we have COVID and a bunch of injuries.
“We just got to really trust – I don’t want to use that word – but we got to trust each other and believe in each other. And, like I said, just communicate. That’s the best way we’re going to get back to the level of basketball we were playing before.”
Doc Rivers Details Final Failed Play
Doc Rivers called a timeout with 6.1 seconds left and drew up a play. The Sixers were trailing the Celtics 87-88 and despite shooting a miserable 37% from the field they had a chance to get a road win in Boston.
Georges Niang threw the inbounds pass to Tobias Harris who was supposed to hit Embiid on the low block, only Harris didn’t see Embiid in high-low action. Harris dribbled it out to the perimeter where he was trapped immediately. He eventually found Niang on the baseline, but Robert Williams blocked his desperate heave. Game over: Celtics 88, Sixers 87.
“I thought what we were looking for was there, honestly,” Rivers said after the game. “We didn’t get it there, and then the execution after that wasn’t great. It’s six seconds. It’s hard to score in six seconds, so we didn’t score is what went wrong with us would be my answer.”
Upon further review, this was clearly a duck-in for Joel Embiid. Celtics were switching everything, Sixers got Brown switched on Embiid. Curry’s pointing at it.
Tobias Harris’ execution is the biggest issue. Not a great inbounds from Georges Niang either.
t.co/E5Iz7xcd6k
Rivers was right. The Celtics were caught in a switch after Al Horford rotated off Embiid to cover Harris. That left Embiid (7-foot) matched up in the paint on Jaylen Brown (6-foot-6) which should have been an easy bucket for the Sixers’ big man. If the Sixers execute the play properly, they probably win the game.