May 26, 2021
The 76ers got a tough draw in their first-round playoff series. Far from being rewarded for getting the Eastern Conference’s top seed, they got a tough matchup against a surging Wizards team that won 17 of their final 23 games to end the regular season.
Philadelphia managed to win Game 1, albeit while getting a bit of a scare. The 125-118 victory was solid, but it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Wednesday night certainly won’t be a gimme. Here are a couple of takeaways from Game 1, and how they apply to Game 2:
If you’d have told me before the game that Joel Embiid would take only 16 shots while Ben Simmons went 3/9 from the field and 0/6 from the free throw line, I might’ve predicted a loss. Fortunately for the 76ers, Tobias Harris bailed them out. Harris had a truly epic game, making 15/29 shots and scoring 37 points.
Unfortunately for the 76ers, it probably won’t happen again. That was the most points Harris has scored all season, and easily the most shots. It was a great performance, but also most likely a fluke performance.
If Simmons is going to be lacking confidence offensively, Embiid is going to need to take over Game 2. The Wizards are starting Alex Len at center, and playing Daniel Gafford and Robin Lopez big minutes off the bench.
Embiid should be dominating these lackluster Washington big men, and Doc Rivers should make getting him the ball in the post a priority. If Embiid isn’t as aggressive as he needs to be and Harris regresses a bit, the Wizards could easily steal Game 2, and getting Washington +8 against the spread poses as very tempting NBA odds.
Simmons’ shooting numbers from Game 1 look atrocious, and they were. But while he can’t possibly shoot 0/6 from the charity stripe again, it will all be forgotten if he can keep it up on the defensive end. Simmons smothered Bradley Beal when guarding him in the series opener, and he needs to be attached to his hip in Game 2.
Beal had a great game overall, shooting 13/23 and scoring 33 points. He was very efficient, but not when Simmons was on him. When Beal was defended by Simmons, he was just 1/6 from the field. He also had three turnovers.
Simmons’ length and speed combination give him rare defensive capabilities, and he’s their only hope to slow down Beal. The 76ers managed to win Game 1 despite Beal dropping 33. If Simmons can help contain him and hold him to around 25, Philly will be in very good shape and would be a solid NBA pick.
The 76ers have to be feeling pretty good. They put the Wizards away despite a great performance from Beal and shooting just 10/32 (31.3 percent) from downtown as a team. That being said, there are still adjustments they need to make.
Offensively, the primary focus for Rivers needs to be Embiid getting his shot more. Defensively, it needs to be having Simmons hound Beal as much as possible. If those two things happen, Philly should wind up being an NBA best bet for tonight and secure a comfortable victory, and a trip to Washington with a commanding 2-0 lead in the series.
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