Gonna be really fucking funny if Simmons plays literally one game this year
ruled out for game 4 because of "back soreness". Sucks about Embiid but hopefully it won't effect his game too much.
Wow! What a piece of shit. I was looking forward to watching that debacle too.
thoughts on Simmons having back surgery now?
Seems odd to have it now. He basically sat out an entire season because his feelings were hurt....now his offseason is going to be delayed over something he could've handled months ago?
And it's a herniated disc. He could've gotten a steroid injection to manage the pain, for the time being, if he really wanted to help his team in the playoffs. Fuck Ben Simmons.
yeah i don't understand why he waited til after the season was over to announce he was gonna get back surgery.
and Embiid is out for game 3, FUCK!!!!!!!!!!
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Gonna be really fucking funny if Simmons plays literally one game this year
ruled out for game 4 because of "back soreness". Sucks about Embiid but hopefully it won't effect his game too much.
Wow! What a piece of shit. I was looking forward to watching that debacle too.
thoughts on Simmons having back surgery now?
Seems odd to have it now. He basically sat out an entire season because his feelings were hurt....now his offseason is going to be delayed over something he could've handled months ago?
And it's a herniated disc. He could've gotten a steroid injection to manage the pain, for the time being, if he really wanted to help his team in the playoffs. Fuck Ben Simmons.
yeah i don't understand why he waited til after the season was over to announce he was gonna get back surgery.
I know a true scumbag back surgeon who says his job is to “convince people that probably don’t need back surgery’s that they should get them”. Think he’s his doc
They're gonna put Embiid in the grave. I honestly don't think it's worth playing him if it is at the cost of next season or going forward. Ligament in the hand, broken face, what's next? Give this guy some protection and build this roster out for next year, hopefully this news about Harden is somewhat true and he's actually open to this idea of not going full max on his option so that they can go get a stud like Beal.
They're gonna put Embiid in the grave. I honestly don't think it's worth playing him if it is at the cost of next season or going forward. Ligament in the hand, broken face, what's next? Give this guy some protection and build this roster out for next year, hopefully this news about Harden is somewhat true and he's actually open to this idea of not going full max on his option so that they can go get a stud like Beal.
Yeah but they've said the hand cannot get worse by playing. It's not like he's playing on a banged up knee or ankle or something.
So Harden is willing to take less? I haven't seen that yet.
I hear you, but I'm of the mind that he can't be Dominant Embiid playing with it either. It's more the face thing than anything else. He absolutely makes them light years better just being on the court, but I dunno, I don't see this version of himself winning a title this year either. I'd rather not expose him further to being a target. And I get all teams are banged up at this point, I just don't feel right with it. I guess if this team was shooting even a smidge better I'd feel better about all this but they're not losing by a little these past two games.
Yeah, I'll have to find it - it was via NBCS Philly so I didn't take it as a complete garbage article. But the thought is there's word that he'd be open to taking less when he exercises his option/extends with the expectation of going after another max player like Beal. Question/concern is how much less do you go without making him walk? And the counter to that is it seems like Harden and Morey have been talking this whole time so Daryl has a pretty good idea of what to do.
Okay yeah I read up on a few article. Would be great. I am scared of a max for him at this point. They'd still have to do a sign and trade for Beal though. So that would likely mean Tobias going.
He's cleared the concussion protocol. If he can play, I am all for him being out there (as I took the ML before the news broke lol). Gotta at least try to make this a series.
Nice to see Harden finally show up. Best of three now bay bay
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
Jokic had no help where Embiid did.
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Embiid made those players better. Nobody has ever had to deal with as crazy a situation as the Sixers endured this year and it was Embiid who not only kept them afloat and thriving on the court but off the court as well. Having your second best player and all star point guard simply refuse to play because his feelings were hurt would've sunk most teams, especially in a media circus like Philly.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
Jokic had no help where Embiid did.
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Embiid made those players better. Nobody has ever had to deal with as crazy a situation as the Sixers endured this year and it was Embiid who not only kept them afloat and thriving on the court but off the court as well. Having your second best player and all star point guard simply refuse to play because his feelings were hurt would've sunk most teams, especially in a media circus like Philly.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
It could have gone either way. Something happened w Embiid that the voting shifted, I forget what but you have a valid argument for him. Dude is a beast. I like watching him play.
Get Jokic his help he needs and that team will be a force.
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
wonder how close the voting was? For awhile I thought they might have co mvp's this year
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
Jokic had no help where Embiid did.
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Embiid made those players better. Nobody has ever had to deal with as crazy a situation as the Sixers endured this year and it was Embiid who not only kept them afloat and thriving on the court but off the court as well. Having your second best player and all star point guard simply refuse to play because his feelings were hurt would've sunk most teams, especially in a media circus like Philly.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
It could have gone either way. Something happened w Embiid that the voting shifted, I forget what but you have a valid argument for him. Dude is a beast. I like watching him play.
Get Jokic his help he needs and that team will be a force.
Yeah but the consensus seemed to shift towards Jokic in the last month of the season for no good reason. Jo's numbers actually got better at the end. Maybe the Harden trade affected some people's votes but Embiid had them as the 1 seed before the trade occurred. I don't get it.
Also Jokic had those guys last year and got swept in the second round. This year he was subbed out for defense against GSW in late game situations. Oh well. He can have his award. I'd prefer to still be alive in the playoffs
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
Jokic had no help where Embiid did.
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Embiid made those players better. Nobody has ever had to deal with as crazy a situation as the Sixers endured this year and it was Embiid who not only kept them afloat and thriving on the court but off the court as well. Having your second best player and all star point guard simply refuse to play because his feelings were hurt would've sunk most teams, especially in a media circus like Philly.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
It could have gone either way. Something happened w Embiid that the voting shifted, I forget what but you have a valid argument for him. Dude is a beast. I like watching him play.
Get Jokic his help he needs and that team will be a force.
but Embiid had them as the 1 seed before the trade occurred. I don't get it.
And they ended as the 4 seed, that may have led to some voters getting off the Embiid train late.
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
Jokic had no help where Embiid did.
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Embiid made those players better. Nobody has ever had to deal with as crazy a situation as the Sixers endured this year and it was Embiid who not only kept them afloat and thriving on the court but off the court as well. Having your second best player and all star point guard simply refuse to play because his feelings were hurt would've sunk most teams, especially in a media circus like Philly.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
It could have gone either way. Something happened w Embiid that the voting shifted, I forget what but you have a valid argument for him. Dude is a beast. I like watching him play.
Get Jokic his help he needs and that team will be a force.
but Embiid had them as the 1 seed before the trade occurred. I don't get it.
And they ended as the 4 seed, that may have led to some voters getting off the Embiid train late.
Nah. That narrative started to shift way before then. You know how tight the East is. They were only 2 back of the 1 seed, same as the Bucks. Nugs were 16 back in the West. And it's not like they held the 1 seed for weeks or months and then tailed off dramatically at the end.
Jokic winning the MVP after being gentlemanly swept, as Embiid is literally showing the league how valuable he is quite ironic.
Jokic had no help where Embiid did.
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Embiid made those players better. Nobody has ever had to deal with as crazy a situation as the Sixers endured this year and it was Embiid who not only kept them afloat and thriving on the court but off the court as well. Having your second best player and all star point guard simply refuse to play because his feelings were hurt would've sunk most teams, especially in a media circus like Philly.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
It could have gone either way. Something happened w Embiid that the voting shifted, I forget what but you have a valid argument for him. Dude is a beast. I like watching him play.
Get Jokic his help he needs and that team will be a force.
Yeah but the consensus seemed to shift towards Jokic in the last month of the season for no good reason. Jo's numbers actually got better at the end. Maybe the Harden trade affected some people's votes but Embiid had them as the 1 seed before the trade occurred. I don't get it.
Also Jokic had those guys last year and got swept in the second round. This year he was subbed out for defense against GSW in late game situations. Oh well. He can have his award. I'd prefer to still be alive in the playoffs
Didn't they lose to the Suns whom went on the the finals? That's not that bad. If they lost to a lesser team that would be a valid argument.
Thoughts on Embiid, the MVP award, and turning this team of misfit parts into a viable Eastern Conference threat.
The stat that mattered.
They said it.
Where things stand.
Link roundup
The Sixers returned to Philadelphia just five days ago with their backs up against the wall, down 0-2 and just one loss away from an uphill climb that no team in NBA history has ever successfully come back from. They had just come off of a two game set down in Miami where they couldn't shoot, couldn't defend their man in the half-court, couldn't rebound when they went to a zone, and struggled to handle Miami's defensive pressure on the perimeter.
That all changed in the span of 48 hours, as the Sixers comfortably controlled both games in Philadelphia to send the series back down to South Beach with the Sixers now having a fresh lease on their playoff lives, the second round now being shortened to a best-of-three sprint.
The reason for the renewed optimism is, well, obvious.
"Well, Joel's gonna be on the plane," head coach Doc Rivers said when asked how they can carry this momentum to Miami and avoid the outcome they experienced in the first two games of the series.
I have, for the most part, sat out of the MVP conversation, for one very simple reason: I have watched one of the candidates play 68 times (76 if you include the playoffs), and usually have watched each of those games multiple. I have watched the other two main candidates play but a fraction of that amount. Each of the three candidates have legitimately played at an MVP caliber level, and have legitimate claims to the award this year. The key to a vote between candidates this close comes down to context and details, to deep evaluations of the burden each superstar carries, and how much their teams fall apart when they're off the floor. I'm deep in the weeds with one of those three cases, and only somewhat versed on the details for the other two.
If I had a vote (which I, thankfully, do not), I would have two options to try to bridge that gap: go back and try to find the time to watch the majority of games from the Milwaukee Bucks and Denver Nuggets, or rely on some of the advanced statistics that many Sixers fans now decry to fill in the gaps, stats which I think have a purpose in evaluating our sport but were not designed to decisively separate the best season in the league from the second best, and stats that struggle to truly capture defensive impact. To truly be confident in my evaluation I would have to obsess over the details of Giannis' and Jokic's individual cases in the same way that I have obsessed over Embiid's season all year long, and since I don't have a vote my time has been better spent elsewhere.
The easiest path, and the most beneficial to me professionally, would have been for me to tweet out, often and loudly, that Joel Embiid is the MVP. More and more that's what local media is becoming, as social media encourages media personalities to pander, both to the athletes that we cover in the hopes of better access, and also to the fans that (understandably) want to see their heroes rewarded. I would certainly sell more subscriptions by ranting about about how outrageous it is that Jokic won the award, by making fun of him for receiving it at their practice facility instead of at a playoff game, by listing all of the many (valid) reasons that Embiid is deserving of the award and by bemoaning stat geeks who rely on VORP and the like. But that's not how I see my job.
Truth is, though, besides being unwilling to be a hype man instead of a journalist, I also just don't prioritize the award too much. To be clear, I most definitely understand why Embiid cares, and certainly understand why you all care as well. Winning MVP would be a tremendous individual accomplishment for a player who has grown so much as a player, as a leader, and as a person.
But my personal focus as an analyst has always been on team building. And while the question of whether Joel Embiid is the MVP of the season is more nuanced than most want to give it credit for, I can very comfortably say that Embiid is playing at an MVP caliber level this season. That's what's truly important.
It's also what we just witnessed these few days as Embiid, coming off a concussion, with a busted face and a torn ligament in his shooting thumb, took this team and almost singlehandedly elevated them to the point where they could, convincingly, take back-to-back games against the team with the best record in the East, resuscitating a season that was on the brink of collapse and washing away the numerous, potential fatal flaws of this team of misfit parts. We are witnessing greatness at a level that this city rarely sees.
Legacies, of course, aren't built solely off of games 3 and 4 of a second-round playoff series. But they're a requisite step to getting to that point. For a team on the brink just a few days ago, they're now in a hell of a spot to pull off what would be a memorable series comeback, largely because Joel Embiid is an MVP caliber player.
I said that Embiid almost singlehandedly elevated them for one very specific reason: James Harden turned back the clock with a vintage Harden performance on Sunday night, with his monster fourth quarter a big reason why Miami was not able to complete the comeback.
After playing all 12 minutes of the third quarter Embiid began the fourth on the bench, with the Sixers holding a four point lead and trying to buy their big man some much-needed rest. On press row we began debating how much rest Embiid would actually get before Rivers became uncomfortable and brought his star back in, and we generally settled on Embiid sitting for about two minutes of game action and returning at around the 10 minute mark. Instead, the Sixers came out and outscored the Heat 12-4 in the first four minutes and change of the final frame, with Harden, thanks to a step-back 3 and another assist on a Tobias Harris corner 3, leading the way.
But Harden was just getting started. When all was said and done Harden finished the final quarter with 16 monster points on 5-9 shooting, including 4-6 from deep, most of which came on incredibly tough stepback 3s over Victor Oladipo and Bam Adebayo, shots that only a handful of people in the world could make. Harden ended the night with 31 points on 8-18 shooting, six made 3s, seven rebounds and nine assists. It was just the second 30-point game of Harden's Sixers career and, given both the stakes at hand and the opponent they were facing, the most impressive and consequential performance of his brief Sixers career.
This was, in many respects, the kind of performance that Sixers fans have been craving ever since Harden put on a Sixers uniform. Stepback 3s and transition pushes, foul baiting and drive-and-kick shot creation, Harden turned back the clock and was an offense unto himself, scoring when needed and bailing out an offense that increasingly became stuck in the mud against a tough Miami defense.
But focusing too much on the vintage Harden performance can cause you to overlook what he's given this team night in and night out, which has been a stabilizing force, and the only true floor general the Sixers have on the roster.
So far in the series against Miami the Sixers are averaging 111.9 points per 100 possessions and shooting 48.5% from the field when Harden is on the floor, compared to 91.1 points per 100 and 42.4% when he's been on the bench, and those splits are that extreme despite the fact that Embiid has missed half of the games in this series. Even beyond the numbers you can just tell by watching, as when Harden goes to the bench the team loses any semblance of a cohesive strategy, and become susceptible to a zone as the team almost inexplicably forgets how to make even the most rudimentary of post entry passes.
While we might spend the next few months debating how often Harden can continue to turn back the clock, there's no doubt he's been a significant net positive during his time with the Sixers and a legitimately stabilizing force. How much that is worth in his next contract is up for debate, but that discussion has overshadowed the impact he is currently making.
Stray thoughts
The Sixers got away with it a bit in that early fourth quarter run, but I really think they need to make a better effort to match Embiid and Adebayo's minutes. Before the game, Rivers was asked whether Dewayne Dedmon being out, and the likelihood that the Heat would play small, would encourage him to match Embiid's minutes with Bam's. "No, I don't worry about who Joel plays against. We want him on the floor as many minutes as he can be on the floor." That's fair. Embiid certainly can defend PJ Tucker in a small-ball unit. But the question that I think has more merit is one that's not framed as "who can Joel guard on the Heat?", but instead "who on the Sixers has a chance to defend Bam?", because we've seen Bam destroy DeAndre Jordan in the pick-and-roll and push Paul Reed around inside at various points throughout this series. I think they should continue to play Embiid as many minutes as they can but perhaps bring him out earlier in the first and third quarters, closer to when Bam goes to the bench, then bring him back into the game earlier as well.
I think we're seeing a bit too much of Matisse Thybulle in this series. Specifically, when Tyler Herro isn't on the floor there's no reason to willingly compromise your floor spacing as much as having Thybulle on the court does. Thybulle spent some time defending a hobbled Kyle Lowry in Game 3, and that's just not necessary, especially given how much Lowry doesn't look like himself as he battles through an injured hamstring.
Jimmy Butler was absolutely incredible, with 25 points in the second half, 17 of which came in the third quarter, keeping the Heat in the game almost by his lonesome. Butler's physicality on his drives to the hoop have really given the Sixers fits, and while some of the calls that went in his favor (the travel, and some of the foul calls on Green) were questionable, that's what happens when a perimeter player forces their way inside as regularly as Butler did last night. I thought the Sixers were a little bit too willing to concede switches on Butler, a reluctant shooter off the pick-and-roll, which allowed Butler to select the matchups he wanted to attack. To that point, Second Spectrum logged Butler scoring just three of his 40 points when Tobias Harris was the primary defender on the shot, but part of that low number is because Harris didn't get through, or willingly conceded switches on, far too many screens. They need to do a much better job in Game 5.
Shooting variance was absolutely at play in Game 4, especially down the stretch. Give each team those same shots in Game 5 and Miami will likely make more of them and the Sixers, Harden especially, will make fewer. But when I'm looking at how that game played out, I think Sixers fans should still be encouraged by what they saw, in large part because of how the Sixers improved in some of the margins of the game, defensive rebounding being primary among them. The Sixers corrected some of the deficiencies that prevented them from competing in the first two games and won a pair of games that, while Miami did legitimately struggle from the perimeter on shots they normally make, took the form of two distinct identities.
Perhaps the key for Game 5, outside of shooting variance, is getting the ball into Embiid in the paint. The Sixers started the game off doing a very good job of that, but then struggled more and more as the game went on, with many of the Sixers' 16 turnovers coming as a result. While Embiid is making some of his midrange shots, he doesn't seem to be too confident in his 3-pointer right now. They'll probably need one dominant offensive showing from Embiid if they are to advance, and he might need a bit more help getting the ball deep in the paint against this swarming defense, and with his current physical ailments, than he normally does.
The stat that mattered
This stat has been frequently cited since last night's game but it's absolutely crucial: over the last two games the Sixers have shot 32-66 from 3-point range (48.5%) compared to 14-65 (21.5%) for the Heat. I mentioned in my rewatch of Game 1 that I didn't feel like the Sixers' overall shot quality lined up with their number of attempts from deep, and I definitely think Embiid's presence helped them create a higher quality looks in these last two games. But there's undeniably a little bit of shooting variance at play here as well.
They said it
"They were switching everything, [and] we didn't really have a lot of movement or a lot of continuity so he just hit some big 1-on-1 shots. In the playoffs, everybody knows what they're trying to get to, everybody knows what each team's trying to get to, and they take things away. You have to have a lot of different 1-on-1 scorers on your team, and I think we have a few of those...It was his night tonight to carry us to a dub." – Tyrese Maxey, on James Harden's performance.
Where things stand
The series is tied 2-2, with Game 5 in Miami on Tuesday night at 7:30 pm. Game 6 will be in Philadelphia on Thursday night at 7 pm, and Game 7, if necessary, is scheduled for Sunday, with the time still to be determined.
8/28/98- Camden, NJ
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Tres Mts.- 3/23/11- Philly. PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Comments
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
So Harden is willing to take less? I haven't seen that yet.
Yeah, I'll have to find it - it was via NBCS Philly so I didn't take it as a complete garbage article. But the thought is there's word that he'd be open to taking less when he exercises his option/extends with the expectation of going after another max player like Beal. Question/concern is how much less do you go without making him walk? And the counter to that is it seems like Harden and Morey have been talking this whole time so Daryl has a pretty good idea of what to do.
He's cleared the concussion protocol. If he can play, I am all for him being out there (as I took the ML before the news broke lol). Gotta at least try to make this a series.
Sixers in 7.
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
I could see Embiid getting it too but the Nuggets literally road on Jokic's shoulders when their team had nothing but injuries.
Nothing against Jokic, but the Nuggets were bad against good teams and that showed as they had no shot in round 1. Great player, but Jo was more deserving this year. I bet there are a lot of writers who regret their vote right now.
Get Jokic his help he needs and that team will be a force.
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA
Also Jokic had those guys last year and got swept in the second round. This year he was subbed out for defense against GSW in late game situations. Oh well. He can have his award. I'd prefer to still be alive in the playoffs
The Sixers returned to Philadelphia just five days ago with their backs up against the wall, down 0-2 and just one loss away from an uphill climb that no team in NBA history has ever successfully come back from. They had just come off of a two game set down in Miami where they couldn't shoot, couldn't defend their man in the half-court, couldn't rebound when they went to a zone, and struggled to handle Miami's defensive pressure on the perimeter.
That all changed in the span of 48 hours, as the Sixers comfortably controlled both games in Philadelphia to send the series back down to South Beach with the Sixers now having a fresh lease on their playoff lives, the second round now being shortened to a best-of-three sprint.
The reason for the renewed optimism is, well, obvious.
"Well, Joel's gonna be on the plane," head coach Doc Rivers said when asked how they can carry this momentum to Miami and avoid the outcome they experienced in the first two games of the series.
I have, for the most part, sat out of the MVP conversation, for one very simple reason: I have watched one of the candidates play 68 times (76 if you include the playoffs), and usually have watched each of those games multiple. I have watched the other two main candidates play but a fraction of that amount. Each of the three candidates have legitimately played at an MVP caliber level, and have legitimate claims to the award this year. The key to a vote between candidates this close comes down to context and details, to deep evaluations of the burden each superstar carries, and how much their teams fall apart when they're off the floor. I'm deep in the weeds with one of those three cases, and only somewhat versed on the details for the other two.
Note: Adrian Wojnarowski reported this morning that Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic has been voted as the league's MVP.
If I had a vote (which I, thankfully, do not), I would have two options to try to bridge that gap: go back and try to find the time to watch the majority of games from the Milwaukee Bucks and Denver Nuggets, or rely on some of the advanced statistics that many Sixers fans now decry to fill in the gaps, stats which I think have a purpose in evaluating our sport but were not designed to decisively separate the best season in the league from the second best, and stats that struggle to truly capture defensive impact. To truly be confident in my evaluation I would have to obsess over the details of Giannis' and Jokic's individual cases in the same way that I have obsessed over Embiid's season all year long, and since I don't have a vote my time has been better spent elsewhere.
The easiest path, and the most beneficial to me professionally, would have been for me to tweet out, often and loudly, that Joel Embiid is the MVP. More and more that's what local media is becoming, as social media encourages media personalities to pander, both to the athletes that we cover in the hopes of better access, and also to the fans that (understandably) want to see their heroes rewarded. I would certainly sell more subscriptions by ranting about about how outrageous it is that Jokic won the award, by making fun of him for receiving it at their practice facility instead of at a playoff game, by listing all of the many (valid) reasons that Embiid is deserving of the award and by bemoaning stat geeks who rely on VORP and the like. But that's not how I see my job.
Truth is, though, besides being unwilling to be a hype man instead of a journalist, I also just don't prioritize the award too much. To be clear, I most definitely understand why Embiid cares, and certainly understand why you all care as well. Winning MVP would be a tremendous individual accomplishment for a player who has grown so much as a player, as a leader, and as a person.
But my personal focus as an analyst has always been on team building. And while the question of whether Joel Embiid is the MVP of the season is more nuanced than most want to give it credit for, I can very comfortably say that Embiid is playing at an MVP caliber level this season. That's what's truly important.
It's also what we just witnessed these few days as Embiid, coming off a concussion, with a busted face and a torn ligament in his shooting thumb, took this team and almost singlehandedly elevated them to the point where they could, convincingly, take back-to-back games against the team with the best record in the East, resuscitating a season that was on the brink of collapse and washing away the numerous, potential fatal flaws of this team of misfit parts. We are witnessing greatness at a level that this city rarely sees.
Legacies, of course, aren't built solely off of games 3 and 4 of a second-round playoff series. But they're a requisite step to getting to that point. For a team on the brink just a few days ago, they're now in a hell of a spot to pull off what would be a memorable series comeback, largely because Joel Embiid is an MVP caliber player.
I said that Embiid almost singlehandedly elevated them for one very specific reason: James Harden turned back the clock with a vintage Harden performance on Sunday night, with his monster fourth quarter a big reason why Miami was not able to complete the comeback.
After playing all 12 minutes of the third quarter Embiid began the fourth on the bench, with the Sixers holding a four point lead and trying to buy their big man some much-needed rest. On press row we began debating how much rest Embiid would actually get before Rivers became uncomfortable and brought his star back in, and we generally settled on Embiid sitting for about two minutes of game action and returning at around the 10 minute mark. Instead, the Sixers came out and outscored the Heat 12-4 in the first four minutes and change of the final frame, with Harden, thanks to a step-back 3 and another assist on a Tobias Harris corner 3, leading the way.
But Harden was just getting started. When all was said and done Harden finished the final quarter with 16 monster points on 5-9 shooting, including 4-6 from deep, most of which came on incredibly tough stepback 3s over Victor Oladipo and Bam Adebayo, shots that only a handful of people in the world could make. Harden ended the night with 31 points on 8-18 shooting, six made 3s, seven rebounds and nine assists. It was just the second 30-point game of Harden's Sixers career and, given both the stakes at hand and the opponent they were facing, the most impressive and consequential performance of his brief Sixers career.
This was, in many respects, the kind of performance that Sixers fans have been craving ever since Harden put on a Sixers uniform. Stepback 3s and transition pushes, foul baiting and drive-and-kick shot creation, Harden turned back the clock and was an offense unto himself, scoring when needed and bailing out an offense that increasingly became stuck in the mud against a tough Miami defense.
But focusing too much on the vintage Harden performance can cause you to overlook what he's given this team night in and night out, which has been a stabilizing force, and the only true floor general the Sixers have on the roster.
So far in the series against Miami the Sixers are averaging 111.9 points per 100 possessions and shooting 48.5% from the field when Harden is on the floor, compared to 91.1 points per 100 and 42.4% when he's been on the bench, and those splits are that extreme despite the fact that Embiid has missed half of the games in this series. Even beyond the numbers you can just tell by watching, as when Harden goes to the bench the team loses any semblance of a cohesive strategy, and become susceptible to a zone as the team almost inexplicably forgets how to make even the most rudimentary of post entry passes.
While we might spend the next few months debating how often Harden can continue to turn back the clock, there's no doubt he's been a significant net positive during his time with the Sixers and a legitimately stabilizing force. How much that is worth in his next contract is up for debate, but that discussion has overshadowed the impact he is currently making.
Stray thoughts
The stat that mattered
This stat has been frequently cited since last night's game but it's absolutely crucial: over the last two games the Sixers have shot 32-66 from 3-point range (48.5%) compared to 14-65 (21.5%) for the Heat. I mentioned in my rewatch of Game 1 that I didn't feel like the Sixers' overall shot quality lined up with their number of attempts from deep, and I definitely think Embiid's presence helped them create a higher quality looks in these last two games. But there's undeniably a little bit of shooting variance at play here as well.
They said it
Where things stand
The series is tied 2-2, with Game 5 in Miami on Tuesday night at 7:30 pm. Game 6 will be in Philadelphia on Thursday night at 7 pm, and Game 7, if necessary, is scheduled for Sunday, with the time still to be determined.
:(
Rough.
2005: Calgary 9/4
2009: Calgary 8/8, San Diego 10/9
2011: Calgary 9/21, Edmonton 9/23, Vancouver 9/25
2012: Missoula 9/30
2013: Calgary 12/2
2014: Amsterdam1 6/16, Amsterdam2 6/17, Trieste 6/22, Berlin 6/26
2016: Ottawa 5/8, Toronto 5/10, Toronto2 5/12
2019: Dusseldorf 6/30 (EV)
2022: Sacramento 5/18
2024: Portland 5/10
10/31/09- Philly
5/21/10- NYC
9/2/12- Philly, PA
7/19/13- Wrigley
10/19/13- Brooklyn, NY
10/21/13- Philly, PA
10/22/13- Philly, PA
10/27/13- Baltimore, MD
4/28/16- Philly, PA
4/29/16- Philly, PA
5/1/16- NYC
5/2/16- NYC
9/2/18- Boston, MA
9/4/18- Boston, MA
9/14/22- Camden, NJ
9/7/24- Philly, PA
9/9/24- Philly, PA
Eddie Vedder- 6/25/11- Philly, PA
RNDM- 3/9/16- Philly, PA