January 22, 2024
Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports
Joel Embiid and Victor Wembanyama each brought their best Monday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
Before they head out on a lengthy road trip, the Sixers returned home Monday night for a battle against top overall draft pick Victor Wembanyama and the rebuilding San Antonio Spurs. Joel Embiid simply dominated, scoring 70 points — a career high and Sixers team record.
Predictably, the Sixers took care of business, winning 133-123 and notching their sixth straight victory. But it was not just any other win. Here is what stood out from a game that will be remembered for a long time:
The Sixers trailed at the end of the first quarter, certainly a surprise against the Spurs, but not a single person in the building seemed to notice. That is because Embiid did what he does best, but even better.
Embiid scored 24 points in the first quarter on 8-12 shooting from the field and 8-for-8 shooting from the free throw line. Embiid completely ignored the outstretched arms of Wembanyama and his Spurs teammates, grabbed every rebound in sight and knocked down almost every jump-shot that he took. Even when accounting for Embiid's lofty standards, this was an absolutely brilliant showing to open the game.
At the end of the first half, Embiid had 34 points to go with 10 rebounds. He reached the 40-point mark three minutes into the second half. He reached the 50-point mark midway through the third quarter. He tied his career-high — 59 points — with a ridiculous three-pointer to beat the third quarter buzzer. And he did all of it in rhythm.
Embiid's scoring is the lede here, but he cleaned the glass at a tremendous rate as well. Part of the reason he scored so much is because he was so active on the boards on both ends -- he scored several put-backs on the offensive glass and frequently initiated transition after grabbing defensive rebounds.
Embiid extended his 30-point scoring streak to 21 games. The last time he scored fewer than 30 points in a game was Nov. 15 — 68 days ago. Put simply, he has mastered the art of scoring the basketball. He does it from every area on the floor, he does it against every defensive scheme designed to throw him off, he does it no matter who he is playing against and he does it no matter who he is playing alongside.
There are simply no words that can accurately describe Embiid's greatness, because it knows no limits. All you can say at this juncture is this: Joel Embiid is playing like the greatest basketball player on the planet.
The Sixers were about as short-handed as possible entering this game — minus Joel Embiid being available — and it forced Sixers head coach Nick Nurse into a corner. Starter De'Anthony Melton remains out with a lingering back injury, while key reserves Patrick Beverley, Marcus Morris Sr. and Robert Covington were all ruled out as well. On top of that, fringe rotation pieces Jaden Springer and Mo Bamba were unavailable. Even Kenneth Lofton Jr., the Sixers' newest two-way player, was out for this one.
The abundance of injuries forced Nurse to rely heavily on Danuel House Jr., insert Furkan Korkmaz into the rotation at the team's backup point guard and give minutes to KJ Martin, who is not part of the regular rotation right now and remains a strong candidate to be traded. Nurse even experimented with Joel Embiid and Paul Reed sharing the floor for a few minutes.
As one of the worst teams in the NBA this season, the Spurs figure to be sellers at the upcoming trade deadline. They don't have many incredible trade targets for the Sixers, but there are a few guys who could make some sense for Sixers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey and his front office.
The two options who stand out most are wings: Doug McDermott and Cedi Osman.
McDermott is a career 41.3 percent shooter from beyond the arc, a true marksman who could give the Sixers some movement shooting on top of the floor spacing he provides. McDermott lacks the athleticism of someone like House, which may make him less viable in the playoffs, but one could make a strong argument that at least in the regular season, his shooting makes him more valuable. Osman is an impressive three-point shooter as well, despite not being in the same stratosphere as McDermott in that department. He is a much more stout defensive player, though, which could make him an interesting sort of middle ground between guys like McDermott and House.
The rookie who entered this game averaging 19.9 points and over 10 rebounds per game was absolutely stellar from start to finish in this one. He knocked down two very early threes that stunned the crowd. But, truthfully, everything he did stunned this crowd. His movement abilities, basketball IQ and extreme skill level are truly something to behold. He has genuine guard skills, yet stands at a legitimate 7-foot-4. It is truly mind-blowing.
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