There was a time not so long ago where a Joel Embiid 39-point performance wouldn’t have moved the needle. There were nights when the former MVP got that done in three quarters.
The 39 points Embiid poured in Friday night in a 115-105 win over the Indiana Pacers felt a little different.
First off, it had been a while. The last time Embiid scored 39 points was May 2, 2024, against the New York Knicks in a Game 6 elimination loss. He failed to reach that number in 19 games last season. He hadn’t even
hit the 30-point mark through his first nine games of 2025-26.
Was it a statement game?
“I don’t know. That’s for those people that don’t think I can do it to decide,” Embiid said. “I can’t change their mind or opinion. It feels good playing like that. I feel like I can do it.”
He was coming off his second-worst shooting game of the young season, a 4-for-21 outing against the Los Angeles Lakers this past Sunday. With the Sixers failing to qualify for the knockout stage of the NBA Cup, the big fella got a couple extra practice days — and some individual work with his longtime trainer Drew Hanlen — to find some rhythm and confidence.
“I think the practice helped,” Nick Nurse said, “his own individual work away from practice certainly helped, which is a great sign that he’s doing that and feeling good or better-ish to do some of that.”
The Sixers needed a vintage Embiid performance. With Tyrese Maxey missing his first game of the campaign, it would be on the veteran portion of the team’s Big 3 to come through — and they did just that.
Embiid and Paul George combined for 64 points and led a strong defensive effort against a scrappy Pacers team led by old friend T.J. McConnell. Indiana shot 25% from the field and put up just 15 points in the decisive fourth quarter. A lineup with VJ Edgecombe, Quentin Grimes and Dominick Barlow, anchored by Embiid and George, smothered the Pacers down the stretch.
It’s fair to note that Indiana, which is missing star guard Tyrese Haliburton and a few other key contributors, is dead last in the NBA in offensive rating. With that said, the Sixers are suddenly ninth in the NBA defensive rating — impressive after a rough start on that end of the floor.
Embiid’s movement improving has been a huge help. (George’s more consistent presence has also been key.) While he won’t likely regain the lateral quickness of his peak, he’s still as smart as any big when it comes to drop coverage. That was evident Friday.
George, who’s barely gotten to play with Embiid over the last season and change, has admired the effort his teammate has put in to be available.
“People don’t understand how much work he does, how much goes into his day-to-day and getting prepared for a game,” George said. “I talk to him, he’s got a list of things he does. He’s a hard worker, man, when it comes to taking care of his body and doing whatever it takes to get on the floor and be available for us. We appreciate all his efforts and just happy that it showed out.“
Embiid’s IQ has also grown exponentially over the years as teams have thrown exotic coverages at the seven-time All-Star. Friday night was no different as Rick Carlisle, one of the best tacticians we’ve seen in the NBA, threw the kitchen sink at Embiid.
After a relatively quiet first stint, Embiid was ultra-aggressive getting downhill during his next run. You could see the big man had more confidence in his body and movements, getting all the way to the cup for shots at the rim or drawing a foul. Then he started mixing in his midrange game and became increasingly difficult to slow down.
Carlisle did it all — 1-on-1, early double teams, late double teams, zone, bigger defenders, smaller defenders — but Embiid recognized and made the right plays all night. Nick Nurse knows a thing or two about throwing funky defensive schemes at star players. He was impressed with the way Embiid navigated those looks.
“Again, I keep saying, he’s best when he’s driving,” Nurse said. “I thought he drove it a lot to draw the fouls early, put them in a tough position of how to play him. I think the best part about it all — 39 is great — but it came in a lot of different schemes they threw at him, and I thought he read the different stuff pretty good most of the night.”
It wasn’t a perfect night by any means.
Embiid is still trying to find his three-ball, though he did end a long drought with a pretty pull-up three as the clock was winding down to close the first half. He finished the evening 2-of-8 from deep, but it was encouraging after he came in 0-for-his-last-16 on triples. He said postgame something had felt off in his shooting hand, but that he felt much better Friday.
The rebounding is still a bit of a concern as Embiid is still lacking much vertically as he works his way back. He joked recently that he was simply going to box out while allowing more athletic guys like Barlow and Edgecombe to swoop in. To his credit, the Sixers won the battle on the glass and Embiid himself came away with a huge offensive rebound and converted an and-one put-back that gave the Sixers a two-possession lead late.
It’s clear this was the most confident Embiid has been in his body in a long time. The mental aspect of things has been equally as important as his physical recovery. The fact that he’s enjoying showing up to the arena and being around his teammates is a big part of that.
“Obviously, when the vibes are positive, it helps a lot,” Embiid said. “Last year, I wasn’t happy all the time coming to work because of everything that was going on, whether it was on or off the court. This year it’s a little different. I got a great group of guys. … Having that stability off the court, you look at the guy next to you and you want to joke with them, talk with them, hang out, and being on the road and just chill — that goes a long way.”
Embiid closed the game by hitting as vintage a shot as we’ve seen him hit in over two years, backing down Pascal Siakam on the right block, then pirouetting left and burying a 17-foot fadeaway.
“It’s whatever,” he said. “We got the win. That’s all that matters, I think.”
Thirty-nine points from Joel Embiid? Light work.
