The Philadelphia 76ers returned home to the Wells Fargo Center after a tough night on Sunday, where they fell against the Cleveland Cavaliers en route. They missed the big star Joel Embiid in that match and they welcomed him back into the line-up and the big guy made a resounding return.
Embiid had a great night for 29 points and 16 rebounds when he threw the Sixers on his back when they needed him the most in a 100-93 win over the Toronto Raptors. Tobias Harris had one of his better games in a Sixers uniform with 26 points and 11 rebounds, Seth Curry had 17, and Ben Simmons had 11, 13 rebounds and seven assists.
With that said, here are the three observations:
Starts slowly
The Sixers continue with this slow start, which is a bit surprising when you consider the talent they have around Simmons and Embiid. The team was down 41-28 before finally kicking it into high gear and came right up to 48 before Toronto was able to make an 8-0 run over a 45.1 second period to finish the half through more sloppy play. They found themselves back in double digits in the third quarter before Embiid got them back in.
Again, that could be pointed to the fact that they haven’t played together much and they are a brand new team with a brand new system. Ultimately, that will not be a valid excuse. With this starting unit, they will have to figure it all out on the ground. Either they will move on with this group or Rivers will have to change something to shock them.
Embiid handles dual teams
The only real positive that can be gleaned from this game is how Embiid handled dual teams. He was sharp with his passing, he made the right decision when he passed out and he was powerful when the time asked. It’s a shame the Sixers missed so many open looks in this one, otherwise that work would show up in the final box score.
The reason this was impressive is due to the fact that it is Toronto. Sure, Marc Gasol is gone now, but Aron Baynes also has a history of frustration from Embiid and Nick Nurse still coaches this team. It’s important that he broke through against this particular team.
Hesitation on violation
The Sixers brought in Curry to shoot the ball and accommodate their two stars. He just does that by being out there, but he would do a lot better if he flashed the open look that was given to him. That seemed to have an effect on everyone at the time as the Sixers passed in these open cans. The hesitation to look open probably indicates that they still deserve what Doc Rivers wants from them at that end of the floor.
On the other hand, Curry is a career of 44.3% of the depth. He’s the only one who can’t hesitate when he catches the ball. Give him credit, he hit a big triple late in the game, but there should never be any hesitation. He has to put the ball down every time he catches it. That’s why the Sixers brought him in here. He needs the floor space for the two stars, so he needs to focus on that part of his game.