Sixers unleash Embiid for nearly 50 minutes in career-long outing vs. OKC
Warning: Story contains coarse language
Someone grab Joel Embiid an oxygen tank.
Prior to Friday's matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder at Wells Fargo Center, the Philadelphia 76ers big man had never reached the 40-minute mark in a game. In fact, he never played over 30 minutes during the 2016-17 campaign.
Restrictions be damned, though, because during a 119-117 triple-overtime loss to Oklahoma City, Embiid was on the floor for a remarkable 49 minutes.
Philadelphia was in a war that just kept going, and needed Embiid every step of the way to keep the score close. Once the final buzzer sounded, the 7-footer had a game-high 34 points on 11-of-20 shooting, grabbed eight rebounds, dished out six assists, blocked a pair of shots, and turned the ball over on seven occasions.
This is just the type of opportunity Embiid had once openly yearned for. At the start of the regular season, Sixers head coach Brett Brown planned to be extra cautious with his rising star, limiting his playing time to somewhere in the teens early on, then gradually increasing it.
This bothered Embiid, who called Brown's decision "fucking bullshit," adding that he felt his body was prepared to handle a larger role. Having missed the first two seasons of his career, and then 51 games last season, the Sixers' reluctance to just let him loose was understandable, yet ultimately, no one knows Embiid's body better than Embiid himself.
Well, it's pretty clear that Philadelphia can't keep the 23-year-old giant sidelined for too long, although he's still not being used on the second night of back-to-backs. His season low is just under 25 minutes in a win over the Houston Rockets in October. Friday marked the 13th time he's gone over 30 minutes.
| OffRtg | DefRtg | NetRtg | |
|---|---|---|---|
| On | 107.2 | 99.9 | 7.3 |
| Off | 101.1 | 108.9 | -7.9 |
(Courtesy: NBA stats)
Embiid was a game-time call against the Thunder with a questionable back, and it was just last Tuesday when he suited up for a season-high 39 minutes against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Philadelphia is 7-6 when he logs 30 or more minutes, and 1-5 when he's out of the lineup.
Thankfully, the team doesn't play again until Monday at the United Center against the red-hot Chicago Bulls, giving Embiid - who was running on fumes by the end of the Thunder thriller - the weekend to recover from a grueling performance, if the Sixers elect to play him at all.