PHILADELPHIA–The Philadelphia 76ers welcomed Joel Embiid back to the lineup on Friday when they played host to the Atlanta Hawks in the preseason finale. The big fella hadn’t played at all in the exhibition schedule and it was time to get him on the floor to get a tune-up game in.
Embiid didn’t have the greatest game as he shot just 3-for-12, but he was able to score 21 points on the strength of knocking down 14 free throws. He also ran the two-man game very well with Tyrese Maxey on the night.
Maxey had 15 points, but his 12 assists were the big number that stood out on this night.
“Well, if he wants to lead the league in assists, he can, but that was great to see,” Embiid said of Maxey. “I just wanted to get everybody going and just work on our two-man game, the timing of everything. I thought we did a pretty fine job. At the same time, we didn’t have anything, the ball wasn’t sticking. It was just moving.”
Maxey is taking on the playmaker role for the Sixers in the midst of the James Harden saga at the moment. His two-man game with Embiid is going to be the focal point for Philadelphia as the regular season approaches.
Getting some time to play with each other in these new roles on Friday was a good step forward for them.
“It was good,” Maxey said of the night with Embiid. “I think he’s really bought into what Nick Nurse is trying to bring as far as the ball moving and stuff like that. There was a couple of times when he got the ball on the elbow and we kinda stood and watched and he made us keep playing and we got some shots out of that so I think it’s gonna be great.”
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