The Sixers losing two out of three games wasn’t necessarily cause for much concern, but the way they lost those games raised some alarm bells. Particularly with Joel Embiid, who has yet to find his shot this season. His defense also began to deteriorate over the past couple of games as he dealt with plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
Through his first 10 games of the season, Embiid shot just 37% from the field and a career-low 55% from the rim. That included a game where he went 0-for-9 from the field in Cleveland
against the Cavaliers, one of the worst performances of his career.
After being blown out by the Boston Celtics, Embiid admitted that he might be in his own head.
“[I’m] probably overthinking it too much,“ he said, ”and then I think the rhythm of the game is different. I’m so used to having to create for myself, so it’s a little bit different.“
The Toronto Raptors coming to town provided a good opportunity for a get-right game. Not only were they down multiple key starters and on the second night of a back-to-back, but their starting center, Jakob Poeltl, has struggled mightily all season.
Embiid didn’t completely snap out of his funk. His 20 points came on 7-of-17 shooting. Toronto was able to get into the lane with relative ease all night, but anyone watching the game could tell that Embiid was moving around the floor much better than he had in recent outings as the Sixers got back in the win column. That fact was capped off by Embiid dunking not once but twice.
“I think it’s a really, really big positive,” said head coach Nick Nurse. “I think that he’s just moving better, and I’m not sure that was the case for a couple games here recently.”
Embiid was able to do all of this after scaring every Sixers fan at the beginning of the game. Early in the first quarter he bumped knees with Ja’Kobe Walter as he was setting a screen and went down in a heap of pain. He went back to the locker room but was able to return three minutes later of game time.
Nurse said that Embiid was “very, very motivated” to play once he had returned to the locker room — so much so that Nurse had trouble subbing him out for his scheduled rests. Nurse did say that’s a good problem, sometimes.
Embiid didn’t talk after the game, but he told reporters at shootaround before the game that he needed to be more aggressive.While he still didn’t hit as many midrange jumpers as he’s used to, that aggression was visible in his shot selection — 10 of his 17 attempts came from the paint and it looked like he really started to hunt dunks. He nearly had another self-lob off the backboard, but Collin Murray-Boyles got in the way, forcing Embiid to kick the ball out to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for a three.
“It’s nice to see the kind of movement spark come back,” Nurse said. “You’ve heard me say this a lot too. When he’s driving the ball, he’s feeling pretty good.”
There’s still a ways to go for Embiid getting back on track. That lethal jumper he’s so famous for still has to come around. At the same time, the aggression he showed in attacking the basket was a welcome sight for every Sixer.
“I always tell him, ‘Bro, like you’re the MVP of this league,‘” VJ Edgecombe said, “you’re that good, you’re that good.‘ I always tell him, ‘No one can stop you. There’s not one person in the NBA than can guard you.‘”
If this is the start of Embiid putting it together, the Sixers’ offense can finally start to look as dangerous as it was advertised over the summer. The fact that they’ve started the season 10-3 in the mean time is one hell of a cushion.
