Embiid overcomes sluggish 2nd quarter to lead victory
Doc Rivers feels the NBA trade deadline is a relief for some players.
“I think it’s always nice whether you want to go, stay or whatever, you know where you are at,” the 76ers coach said before Friday’s game against the New York Knicks. “So I always thought that’s a relief for everybody.”
For Jalen McDaniels, Friday marked his introduction to the Sixers after being acquired from the Charlotte Hornets in a four-team trade also involving the Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers.
McDaniels didn’t play in the 119-108 victory at the Wells Fargo Center, but he wasn’t needed.
Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and James Harden all did what they do as the Sixers avenged Sunday’s loss to New York at Madison Square Garden.
Embiid had game highs of 35 points and 11 rebounds. Maxey added 27 points on 9-for-16 shooting — including 5 of 8 3-pointers off the bench — and Harden added 20 points, a game-high 12 assists and eight rebounds.
The trio enabled the Sixers (35-19), who are third in the Eastern Conference, to snap a two-game skid.
All-Star Julius Randle had
30 points and 10 rebounds for the Knicks (30-27). Former Villanova star Jalen Brunson added 30 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.
Unlike Sunday, the Sixers came to play in the fourth quarter, making 6 of 11 3-pointers and outscoring the Knicks 27-15. In the last meeting, they made just 3 of 16 shots, including going 0-for-6 in the fourth quarter.
Embiid took the braids out of his hair sometime between the morning shootaround before the game. As a result, he played with a huge Afro.
And on this night the Sixers’ version of “Afroman” was his usual self. Embiid finished with 15 first-quarter points on 7-of-9 shooting.
However, things cooled off for Embiid in the second quarter.
The 7-foot-2, 280-pounder, who was named an All-Star game starter as an injury replacement, cooled off in the period. He scored four points from the foul line but didn’t attempt a shot for 6 minutes, 47 seconds.
Embiid then scored on a layup 20 seconds into the third quarter.
However, aside from showing a few bursts of energy, Embiid looked sluggish early in the second quarter. At one point a fan yelled “Wake up, Joel.” He appeared to find his groove as the quarter progressed.
Embiid tallied eight points, including the final six, during the Sixers’ 13-0 run that gave them an 87-86 lead at the 3:21 mark. He ended up scoring 13 points in the third quarter on 6-for-7 shooting.