Philadelphia 76ers win while Heat Winslow pays $15K fine

Philadelphia 76ers gets last laugh. Heat funnyman Justise Winslow fined $15K for stepping on Joel Embiid‘s face mask in game three

The Philadelphia 76ers left Philadelphia tied 1-1 with the Miami Heat, and found themselves on the road in an attempt to reclaim their momentum. The focus of game three was important enough to compel the Sixers to start center Joel Embiid.  Huge games require huge risks. Philadelphia was willing to take those risks.

But the Miami Heat took some risks as well. In game three, confidence buoyed by a rare road win and now on friendly turf, the Heat pushed the envelope of intimidation beyond the limits of NBA regulations.  Dwyane Wade video pulling Sixers Justin Anderson‘s arm out of it’s socket trended in social media. But the most flagrant and offensive show boating occurred in the second quarter.

Stupid step

Miami Heat Justice Winslow was on fire in game three, scoring 19 point and helping propel the Heat to an early lead. So what compelled him to purposefully step upon the protective face mask of Sixers center Joel Embiid?  Well, intelligence is not the answer. Not only was the move a cheap attempt to provoke the Sixers, but the Heat held the lead and Winslow was a big reason for that lead. In the second half? Winslow scored nothing, and the Philadelphia 76ers won the game, handily.

But that story didn’t end there. The Miami Heat faced the Philadelphia 76ers once more. And like all previous games, the Heat took a lead at halftime. But once more, the Philadelphia 76ers scored more in the second half to pull out a come from behind win. It was an ugly game four, marked with incredible number of fouls and likely just as many fouls uncalled. On one play, Joel Embiid dove at a loose ball, as did Justise Winslow and Josh Richardson. Embiid emerged unscathed. Richardson headed to the locker room with a bruised shoulder, and Winslow received four stitches above his eye.