PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Joel Embiid pumped his fist in the air and exhorted the Philly crowd to get louder as Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey hit game-changing threes and stymied Brooklyn runs with clutch boards.
“It’s as happy as I’ve ever seen him since I’ve been here with other guys making shots,” third-year coach Doc Rivers said. “He was really celebrating his teammates tonight.”
With good reason. For a franchise player who was raised in the organisation to Trust the Process, Embiid has finally come around to learning how to trust his teammates.
Maxey hit six three-pointers and scored 33 points, Embiid and Harris had 20 apiece, and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Brooklyn Nets 96-84 yesterday to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference playoff series.
Embiid, the two-time NBA scoring champion, was quiet offensively, going six of 11 from the floor, but he did just about everything else. The MVP finalist had 19 rebounds, seven assists and three blocks.
Embiid’s increased faith in his teammates is one reason the third-seeded Sixers expect a deep run in the playoffs.
Harris had 12 rebounds. James Harden scored only eight points on three-of-13 shooting for the Sixers after a sensational Game 1 effort.
Cam Johnson led the Nets with 28 points. Johnson sent Embiid stumbling on a one-handed dunk down the right side that posterised the seven-footer. Johnson stared down Embiid as the Nets forward backpedaled on defence in the first half. “I don’t remember getting dunked on,” Embiid tried to say with a straight face.
The slam was Brooklyn’s last GIF-worthy highlight.
Maybe the 76ers just needed to listen to their coach more as they chase their first NBA championship since 1983.
After Brooklyn scored the first bucket of the second half, Rivers called a quick timeout.
Maxey, who kept the Sixers alive with 15 points in the first half, was stuffed by the rim on a fast break but Harris followed for the bucket and the 76ers finally tied the game at 55-all.
Maxey didn’t miss on the next possession – a corner three that sent the crowd into a frenzy.
Then PJ Tucker missed a three, grabbed his own rebound, dished to Harden and the Beard buried his first three of the game. Harris came right back and connected on a three that had him hopping and waving his arms off the court headed into a timeout.
Embiid then erupted in celebration with the Sixers ahead 64-56.
Philly’s scoring spurt was about it for the Nets, who shot 35 per cent in the second half.
The Sixers needed the spark after they spiraled from Game 1 dominance to Game 2 disaster in the first half.
No Sixer represented that fall more than Harden. His seven 3s steadied the Sixers in the opener but the aging vet – who battled left Achilles tendon soreness down the stretch of the regular season – was overwhelmed in Game 2. He missed 6 of 7 shots in the first half and all four three-point attempts. Throw in two fouls and five turnovers and it was a marvel the Sixers only trailed 49-44 at the break.
Holding only a slim lead had to distress the Nets. Johnson scored 22 points in the half but – much like in Game 1 – the Nets got crushed on the boards and in the paint. Embiid scored eight points but grabbed 15 boards, 13 defensive.
