Criticized since the beginning of the preparation, Joel Embiid is still gaining momentum. Against Germany, the pivot thus compiled 15 points at 4/7 shooting, 8 rebounds and 5 assists in 21 minutes on the court.
“Every season it takes me a few games to get going, and it's the same here” explains the Sixers player about his sluggish start to preparation. “That's why we have preparation matches. I feel like myself. Gradually, I'll find my MVP level again.”
Rotations that are taking place
Defensively, Joel Embiid suffered against the pace and spacing of the Mannschaft, with Daniel Theis and Johannes Voigtmann trying to make him cover as much ground as possible. But offensively, the automatisms with LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Jrue Holiday seem to be well and truly falling into place.
“I think we can do much better”explains Steve Kerr. “We’re getting to a point where we’re comfortable with the rotations and guys are getting comfortable with each other. But there’s a lot of things we can do better. I thought our passing wasn’t very good tonight. They put a lot of pressure on defense and it caused some turnovers. We can tighten up the game and improve on that.”
Replacements in more difficulty
And while he had lost a lot of balls in previous matches, Joel Embiid only gave one back to the opponent this time, and it was Anthony Edwards or Jayson Tatum who fed the 14 American lost balls.
For the second game in a row, the US substitutes did not play their role. Supposed to make up the difference against the opposing benches, they certainly brought rhythm in the first quarter, but then they lost too many balls and it was the starting five, with LeBron James of course, who were forced to make the difference.
We can also note that Steve Kerr did not use Tyrese Haliburton at all, already in difficulty since the beginning of the preparation, during this match against Germany. A simple question of “matchup”?
