Sixers: What should the closing lineup be?

Sixers’ closing lineup center: Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid finished second in MVP voting last season, averaged 28.5 points on 51.3 percent shooting, and became one of the NBA’s most prolific mid-range scorers. Of course he is on the floor, and of course he is the centerpiece of any and every crunch-time set. Embiid is the sail on Philadelphia’s mast. Without him, they’re just floating in place.

Last season, the Sixers received better crunch-time production from Embiid than ever before. He made quicker reads, passed fruitfully out of doubles, and expanded tenfold on his already-impressive assortment of go-to moves. He sliced defenses apart at every level, whether it be drawing fouls at the rim or hitting step-back 3s.

The Sixers have one of the 10 best players in the NBA and that player should always be on the floor to close games. It is a given. There’s no real argument against it.

That said, Embiid did have some notable turnover issues in the Sixers’ second round loss. Turnovers have plagued Embiid in the past, and they have been particularly problematic late in games. Those issues were long forgotten for much of last season, but in games six and seven against Atlanta, Embiid committed eight turnovers a piece. He had two very costly turnovers at the end of game seven, essentially putting the seal and the stamp of approval on Atlanta’s conference finals bid.

Some of it was fatigue. Some of it was slow processing speed. Some of it was the simple fact that Atlanta’s defense had virtually no one else to worry about, allowing them to zero in on Embiid’s every movement. The last part, in this writer’s opinion, is the biggest problem, and it’s a problem the Sixers can potentially fix with a Simmons trade (especially if it yields Damian Lillard). It’s also a problem Tyrese Maxey can help alleviate, to a certain degree. His ability to penetrate the defense and pressure the rim makes it so Embiid doesn’t have to get the ball rolling every possession.

The trappings of a set offense against a set defense can adversely affect Embiid, especially when Simmons and company are clogging up the floor with indecisive play and stodgy ball-handling chops. Maxey isn’t the end-all, be-all, and the Sixers still lack the perfect closing complement to their 7-foot All-Star, but this five-man group is a good starting point as the regular season approaches.

(Shout out to our friends over at Air Alamo for the inspiration)