Sixers lose third straight, fall to Rockets without Joel Embiid

The Sixers lost their third straight game as they fell to the Houston Rockets Thursday night by a final score of 113-102. This was the Sixers’ first game since Joel Embiid underwent a successful appendectomy, which has almost certainly marked the end of his regular season.

Here’s what stood out.

The Sixers’ obvious problem

It’s been said for years that the Sixers chances of postseason success are dependent on the availability of Joel Embiid. The first three quarters of this game went as expected, with the Sixers losing each and finding themselves down by 23 points entering and as many as 28 at their worst.

The obvious problem is that the Sixers were without their superstar, who, even after years of injuries and general wear and tear, still plays at an All-Star level, at least offensively. The underlying issue is that the Sixers have been constructed around Joel Embiid, and, frankly, that allows for their large underlying issue to continue to fester.

The Sixers do not know how to play without Joel Embiid.

Throughout the season, whether it be the players or head coach Nick Nurse, it’s been frequently mentioned that the Sixers have played at least two different styles, simply described as with and without Embiid. With Embiid, the Sixers have an offensive player who can position himself at the top of the key or nail, putting himself in a position to score or allowing his natural gravity to pull in defenders, creating an opportunity to kick the ball out to an open shooter. Without that presence, the Sixers are relegated to pushing the tempo as fast as they can, but in the half-court, they are completely stagnant.

Little can be done so late in the season, but moving forward, the Sixers would be wise to invest in more half-court creation, whether that comes in the form of player personnel, coaching or even by forcing Embiid to play out of his comfort zone when available.

Other takeaways

• After a great stretch of games, Paul George played one of his worst in a Sixers uniform when the team arguably needed him the most. The Sixers are back in action Friday night, and George must look better than he did in this game.
• Justin Edwards continues to do nothing but serve when called upon. The effort he put in on both ends as the Sixers attempted their fourth-quarter comeback. Edwards has been subject to the beck and call of Nick Nurse throughout the season, but has been ready for the moment far more often than not when his name is called.
• Shoutout to Andre Drummond for the absolute vet move in the fourth quarter that led to Kevin Durant missing not one, but two straight free throws as the Sixers attempted their comeback. In case you missed it, Drummond launched up from a bent-over position about a half-second before each of Durant’s attempts. Durant spoke to the baseline official after the first instance, but it was waived off, so Drummond did it again, and it worked… again. This subtle rule violation allowed the Sixers to bring the game back within five points and nearly pull off the comeback.

Up next for the Sixers

The Sixers are back in action Friday night as they travel to Indiana to face the Pacers. With only two games remaining in the season, another year of Sixers basketball is coming to a close. 

Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. Friday night.

Unless otherwise stated, all stats included in this article are via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass, Basketball Reference or Team Rankings. All salary information via Spotrac.

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