Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid is one of those guys who always plays to the crowd. He loves the energy the fans bring to the arena and he always reciprocates it back with his play and his tendency to have them get louder.
In Wednesday’s Game 2 win over the Washington Wizards, Embiid had 22 points and seven rebounds and there was one moment in the second quarter that seemed to punctuate things for Philadelphia.
Embiid ran the break, caught a pass from Ben Simmons, and he converted a layup while being fouled. He then celebrated by thrusting on the ground and the fans went wild. He then got up and egged them on to get louder in classic Embiid style.
“It’s fun, I missed the crowd,” said the big fella afterward. “I mentioned that in the past DX is my favorite, Triple H, and Shawn Michaels were my favorite wrestlers. Obviously, the group was also my favorite and that’s what they used to do and also when the refs called the And-1, it just makes sense to combine the both of them and just enjoy myself.”
Joel Embiid 🔥🔥😂😂
It is Hump Day
pic.twitter.com/sceZGNf6OT— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) May 27, 2021
The play punctuated a big second quarter for the Sixers as they shot 68.2% from the floor and they scored 36 points. That allowed them to take a 71-57 lead into halftime and they were able to win pretty comfortably.
“We moved the ball,” said Embiid. “With the way they were guarding and me and really not allowing me to really catch the ball and they’re doubling and triple-teaming me as the ball is in the air. In that situation, I just got to make plays, get guys open. We got a lot of shots out of that, Ben was wide-open a lot of times, we have more open shooters. So just moving the ball just taking whatever the defense gives us and just finishing.”
On the defensive end, the Wizards shot 52.4% from the floor, but they were just 1-for-10 from deep and they missed eight of their 16 free throws as they were not able to keep up.
“I rarely get into the offensive numbers,” said Rivers. “I go straight to defense, I really do. The offense was great just because of the spacing that they gave each other. The ball didn’t stick, it was from decision to decision, decisiveness, quick decision. We say it a billion times every practice move it, quick decision, be decisive, I thought our guys did a great job of sharing the ball.”
The 11,160 passionate Philadelphia fans that filled the arena on Wednesday made things that more fun for Embiid and the Sixers. In a season where they have had to play in empty arenas for most of the season due to the pandemic, this was refreshing.
“At the end of the day, I missed the crowd,” Embiid finished. “I like they get loud because it doesn’t only help me, it also helps the whole team. Just them by getting loud makes us want to play harder and wanting to get more stops and get out in transitions and make plays.”
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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