Embiid drops career-high in limited minutes, Sixers get 3rd win

Last season, the Philadelphia 76ers lost 31 games before picking up their third win.

This year, to save them from tears, they're riding with someone special.

Yes, the Sixers improved to 3-10 on Saturday night, stomping the Phoenix Suns 120-105 behind another brilliant performance from Joel Embiid.

The rookie center, who wasn't even sure he'd play because of a balky ankle, torched the Suns in every way imaginable. He controlled the paint at both ends, turned away shots at the rim, scored in the post, and stepped out to hit jumpers from all over the floor.

"They gave me a lot of open looks and I just found them and made shots," Embiid told reporters after the game, according to Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times. "I came out tonight and wanted to dominate."

Dominate he did. In just 20 minutes of action, he scored a career-high 26 points, shooting 9-of-14 from the field and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. He grabbed seven rebounds, dished two assists, blocked two shots, and finished a plus-16.

"I would've guessed that he would score in a variety of ways (coming into the year)," said Sixers coach Brett Brown. "I would not have thought he was going to score as freely as he did tonight."

Embiid continues to make hay in limited minutes during this electrifying start to his NBA career. After Saturday's game, he's averaging 18 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game, which translates to 29.4, 12.4, and 3.6 per 36 minutes.

The Sixers, meanwhile, have to be wishing they could play the Suns more than twice a year, given their recent success against Phoenix and lack thereof against the rest of the league.

The win also pulled Philadelphia out of the NBA cellar, dropping the 2-10 Dallas Mavericks into that ignominious spot. The last time the Sixers didn't have at least a share of the league's worst record at the end of a day in which they played, was April of 2015.