After having been pretty well rounded for ten days, the Sixers found Joel Embiid this night, and the Cameroonian celebrated his return by offering the victory (104-101) to his training against the Hawks. Author of 30 points, the All-Stars pivot scored 7 points in the last minute, including the winning basket 19 seconds from the siren.
Before that, he got Philly back to one point, then he was instrumental in forcing the Hawks to lose the ball with a 24-second violation. There are then 30 seconds left, and Embiid takes advantage of a “switch” from the Hawks to find himself facing Dejounte Murray. The difference in size and weight is too obvious, and with a simple nudge, Embiid creates enough space to place a small shot four meters (101-100).
And it’s him again, on the Hawks’ next attack, who deflects Trae Young’s lobbed pass for John Collins’ alley-oop. To the sound of “MVP, MVP”, the Cameroonian finishes the job on free throws, and Philly wins a 3rd victory in a row, the 7th in the last nine matches.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
Hawks stray bullets. Atlanta lost 20 balls last night, like this lobbed pass from Young deflected by Embiid. In the last quarter, the Hawks lost seven balls, including three for Murray alone.
Area defense. Trailing after a quarter, the Sixers used the area a lot to get back into the game. With Embiid at the heart of the racket, the Sixers limited penetrations, and sacrificed some long shots. But above all they slowed down the Hawks’ attack, forced to circulate the ball, and cause stray balls.
Zero. PJ Tucker doesn’t care to score any points, and again tonight he scores none. In 28 minutes, he took three rebounds and lost a ball.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ Joel Embid. In good “diesel”, he took a few minutes to enter his match, to the point of missing his first four shots. But then he dominated Clint Capela and his opposite. 30 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists for a ghost, that’s not bad…
✅ Shake Milton. A serious candidate for the title of Player of the Week, Milton waited until the second half to bring out the big game. His relationship with Embiid, especially in the 3rd quarter, is interesting.
✅ De’Andre Hunter. The most consistent of the Hawks. It does not force anything, and always places itself in the right place. He delivered a good duel to Tobias Harris.
⛔ Dejounte Murray. He loses seven balls, and in such a tight game, it’s expensive.
THE FOLLOWING
Philadelphia (12-9) : trip to Cleveland on Wednesday.
Atlanta (11-10) : trip to Orlando on Wednesday.
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