The Philadelphia 76ers took on the Washington Wizards on Wednesday afternoon inside the bubble in Orlando and they were able to win two in a row as they earned themselves a 107-98 win over Washington.
Joel Embiid once again had a huge game with 29 points and 11 rebounds with three steals and two blocks while continuing to make strides in passing out of the double teams. He did foul out late after a good acting job by Wizards big man Thomas Bryant, but Philadelphia had the game in hand by then.
Here are three observations from another up and down win in Orlando:
Fourth-quarter defense
The Sixers defense was not bad to begin this game. Washington had their issues getting into the paint and it affected the rest of their offense. However, they made a clear change in the third quarter and they worked their way into a lead after being down by as many as 11. Philadelphia did not have the same sting as they did in the first half and that has to be something that bothers coach Brett Brown who wanted to fix the defensive issues in this game. Ben Simmons left with a knee injury in the third so that could have played a part in what happened on the defensive end.
In the fourth, the defense did improve a lot. The Sixers tightened up a bit more and the Wizards had trouble getting into the paint. When they did, they made some tough shots courtesy of second-year guard Troy Brown Jr. One has to give credit where it is due. Philadelphia gave up 24 points in the fourth after giving up 46 and 43 in the first two games, respectively.
Embiid’s dominance
Embiid has looked like a different player since the bubble season began in Orlando. Brown certainly was not playing around when he said this is the best shape the big fella has been in. He has looked lean and mean so far down in the post as well as continuing to make better decisions out of the double team. The first possession of the game, Washington sent an aggressive double his way and he immediately kicked it out to Josh Richardson who then found Shake Milton for an easy corner triple.
In the third quarter, he was not able to get into a groove offensively, but his mere presence was something that could not be ignored. That opened up space for Tobias Harris to make an impact in the fourth quarter for the offense. Harris and Embiid combined to score 21 straight Sixers points at one point in the second half.
3-point shooting
The Sixers were able to move the ball and find open shots in the first half from deep. They were 7-for-15 from deep in the first half on their way to sizable lead at the half. Milton made his first two, Josh Richardson also made his first two, Furkan Korkmaz knocked some down off the bench, and even Simmons took a shot from deep in the corner. Alec Burks was also big in this game as he made two threes in this one and is now a perfect 6-for-6 while inside the bubble.
Philly wins it 107-98 over the Wizards
Joel Embiid 29 and 11 before fouling out
Tobias Harris 18 and 6
Josh Richardson 15
Shake Milton 14
Furkan Korkmaz 10
Al Horford 2, 10, and 5
Alec Burks 9
Ben Simmons 8, 6, and 4 before leaving with an injury #Sixers— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) August 5, 2020
The 3-point shot is always something that is looked at when it comes to the Sixers. They need these types of shots to drop in order for this offense to work. Even with the new move of Simmons over to the power forward position, shooting and spacing is so important to their offensive plans. [lawrence-related id=36198,36185,36179]