2019 NBA All-Star Game: Philadelphia 76ers give solid performances

The Philadelphia 76ers had two All-Stars, in Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, for the first time since Allen Iverson and Dikembe Mutombo in 2001. Seeing Ben and Joel on different teams was very odd, hopefully, this was just a one-time thing.

All-Star games aren’t the best fit for players like Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons due to the style of play, targeting players with steller handles and shooting range beyond 20-feet. Joel still managed to put together a solid game as a starter along with Ben Simmons getting an ample amount of playing time. The stat lines for the two was not too bad:

The Joel Embiid halftime interview was the highlight for the Philadelphia 76ers‘ side of the first half. Joel talked trash talk back forth with Kevin Durant that occurred in the first half.

https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1097324449655709696

Joel Embiid also had some pre-game antics, playing volleyball with Steph Curry which was enjoyable to watch.

Embiid forgot it was an all-star game and tried to do a rip-through dribble and draw a foul that obviously wasn’t called. This occurred a few other times throughout the game. I guess you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Embiid’s presence on the court alone was fun to watch, especially between possessions and timeouts.

Ben Simmons had no first quarter playing time but came into the game in the second quarter and converted an alley-oop dunk to score his first All-Star points.

Embiid blocked Kyrie at the rim during the second quarter which made all Sixers fans grin. That was a potential preview of a Boston-Philly playoff series.

The second half featured Ben Simmons hook shots, layups, and Joel Embiid rebounds, put-backs, and other non-highlight reel plays.

All in all, the 2019 All-Star game was not disappointing for the 76ers representatives. Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons made their presence felt and put together solid games in a game that resulted in Ben Simmons and Team LeBron coming out on top.