PHILADELPHIA — This is far from the time to wait for a prime trade acquisition to play. But the 76ers are making due thanks to large part to Joel Embiid.
The MVP candidate had game highs of 40 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Sixers to Saturday’s 103-93 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, even as the Sixers wait on James Harden. This was Embiid’s second triple-double of the season and fourth of his career.
It marked the Sixers’ second game since acquiring James Harden, Paul Millsap and two first-round draft picks from the Brooklyn Nets Thursday for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond.
Millsap also has yet to play, but being undermanned hasn’t hindered the Eastern Conference’s fifth-place Sixers (34-22).
They outlasted the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday before knocking off the third-place Cavs (35-22).
The Sixers would have loved to play Harden, but the perennial All-NBA selection has yet to make his debut because of left hamstring tightness. There’s no timetable for his return and that of Millsap, who last played on Jan. 13. The Sixers can only hope that they return soon, as the schedule doesn’t lighten. The Sixers have a home game against Boston (Tuesday) and a road game at Milwaukee (Thursday) before heading into the All-Star break.
“It is what it is,” Doc Rivers said. “It will all wash out at the end of the day. We can’t pick and choose health. We can’t pick and choose trades or at least the timing of that.
“And so, you know, really the key for us is to be ready when they need to be ready.”
This game was a great example of why Embiid is untouchable in a trade. It’s also why the Sixers wanted to make a trade for Harden to help Embiid win a title.
Embiid made 11 of 22 shots, including going 4 of 5 on 3-pointers. He also went 14 of 15 from the foul line.
With the Sixers up 103-86, Embiid exited the game with to chants of “MVP! ... MVP! ... MVP!” with 2 minutes, 54 seconds remaining.
Tyrese Maxey (16 points) and Tobias Harris (11 points) were the Sixers’ other double-figure scorers. Meanwhile, All-Star point guard Darius Garland paced the Cavs with 27 points
Embiid’s impact
Embiid has been playing these recent games with a banged-up left wrist. But you wouldn’t have known that Saturday night against Nets center Jarrett Allen and everyone else tasked with guarding him.
The Sixers center scored nine of his team's first 16 points, then went on to make 4 of 6 shots, including going 2-for-2 on 3-pointers, en route to 14 points in the quarter. He also had six assists and five rebounds while playing 10 minutes.
Embiid continued where he left off after subbing back into the game with 7 minutes, 34 seconds left. He added 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting. His highlight was a one-handed dunk over Allen to put the Sixers up 54-49 with 1:40 before intermission.
The five-time All-Star added 16 points after intermission.
Still no timeline
Harden arrived in the Philadelphia area earlier in the day. He and Millsap were evaluated by the Sixers medical team and met with Rivers, among others, at the arena. Millsap was in the building for Saturday night’s game and received a nice ovation when shown on the jumbotron at the conclusion of the first quarter. The Sixers played a video of Harden during a break in action early in the second quarter.
Rivers was asked if they’ll have to practice before being cleared to play.
“The practice part probably won’t matter as much as the health,” Rivers said. “Let’s say he’s not ready to practice, but ready to play, we would play him anyway. It’s just when you do trades at this time of the year, there’s many times you put a guy on the floor with zero practice …
“So the moment he is cleared to play whether we have practice in front of that or not; we are just going to throw you out there.”
When Harden does play, Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff thinks he’ll form a solid duo with Embiid. Bickerstaff’s and Harden’s paths crossed with the Houston Rockets. Bickerstaff was hired as a Rockets assistant on July 15, 2011. He became Houston’s interim coach on Nov. 18, 2015 after Kevin McHale was fired. He held the job through the rest of the season. Harden played in Houston from the 2012-13 season until he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets on Jan. 13, 2021.
“James is a phenomenal talent,” Bickerstaff said. “He can impact winning in a bunch of different ways. He is one of the, if not the, most complete offensive player in our game. So I’m sure Doc is over there thinking of all the things he can do, but he’s going to make this team better.
“He makes his teammates better. He’s going make it difficult on opposing teams.”
