The Philadelphia 76ers still have the makings of a playoff team, barring further injury problems.
December was not kind to the Philadelphia 76ers. They saw injuries pile up and the losses inevitably followed, dropping below .500 after what had been a promising 13-9 start to the season. Heading into their Christmas Day game with the Knicks, it looked like Philly might be back in the lottery battle.
Things turned around, though. Joel Embiid, who missed three games with a bad back, returned in the game prior, a loss in Toronto. That meant Embiid was healthy for his first career game in MSG — a game they would end up winning on national T.V.
The Sixers are 5-2 since Embiid returned, including that one unexpected win over Denver when Jo was rested. Things have finally turned around, and they’re just one game below .500 at 18-19. For a young team facing the league’s toughest schedule, that’s not bad.
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Injuries naturally lead to inconsistency, but having Embiid out of the rotation is the biggest hit this Sixers team can take. A lot of their offense runs through him, and that was especially true during that late-December stretch. If Embiid was out, the offense stagnated and the defense fell off a cliff.
So, in short, the Sixers’ success hinges on Embiid’s health. That’s something we all knew coming into the season, but the degree to which his presence affects the outcome of games was almost understated. He’s the lifeblood of this team.
Embiid’s recent health has been accompanied by some solid adjustments as well, starting with Ben Simmons. He got to the free throw line 15 times against San Antonio on Wednesday night, highlighting his aggressiveness.
When Simmons gets to the rim and embraces his scoring, that opens up the offense in new ways. The Sixers struggle when Simmons defers because it allows opposing defenses to play the passing lanes and shut down the other weapons around him — and those other weapons don’t do a great job creating for themselves, outside of Joel.
If he’s getting into the lane, getting to the line, and scoring 20-plus points per night, that’s no longer the case.
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Along with Simmons getting more free throw-happy, the Sixers have also seen their defense come to life. Robert Covington looks like his old self on that end, while Trevor Booker and Amir Johnson continue to provide underrated value off the bench. It helps to have smart, energetic defenders behind Embiid.
Perhaps the biggest improvement, however, has been turnovers. The Sixers are getting smarter with their passes, and part of that comes back to Simmons being more decisive. They only turned the ball over 13 times against the Spurs, which played a big role in Brett Brown’s first win against his former team.
Also, as a brief aside, this team loves Brown. Please stop asking for his head.
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In general, the Sixers rise and fall with Embiid. If he’s out there, they have chance each and every night. That, combined with their recent improvements elsewhere, hopefully means the Sixers are back on track.