Did 76ers Lack Urgency vs. Wizards? Joel Embiid Weighs In

For the second-straight game, the Philadelphia 76ers remained alive through the first half thanks to their star center’s scoring. Through the first quarter of action in the matchup against the Washington Wizards, Joel Embiid scored 16 of his team’s first 30 points.

In the second quarter, he produced ten more as the Sixers were outscored 35-26. Going into halftime, the Sixers trailed to a 14-20 Wizards team 67-56. At the time, only one other Sixers player had scored double-digits as James Harden racked up 12 first-half points.

The Sixers kept up with a similar trend on Tuesday. After trailing double-digits in the first half, they turned up the offensive intensity in the second half and gave the Wizards a run for their money as the 76ers outscored Washington 29-27.

Philadelphia was closing in on Washington’s lead going into the fourth quarter, but unlike their previous two matchups, which resulted in comeback wins, the Sixers couldn’t find the same final results against the Wizards.

When asked about whether the Sixers lacked urgency or not throughout the matchup, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers described it in his own way.

“You can use whatever word you want to use,” Rivers told reporters after Tuesday’s loss. “I just didn't think we came with the right approach. So that's the word I'm using.”

As for Embiid, he agreed with the notion that the Sixers lacked urgency throughout the game.

“That’s true,” said Embiid. “We let them hang around from the beginning of the game. Same thing that it’s been the last three games. So, we just got to do a better job just staying focused from the beginning.”

On a personal level, Embiid found tons of offensive success on Tuesday night as he scored 48 points in 35 minutes. But with his team losing 116-111, Embiid aimed to take accountability for the loss.

“It was all on me,” the center continued. “I had a bad last two minutes. That was all on me.”

Tuesday’s loss to the Wizards could serve as a humbling experience for the Sixers, who took on their first loss in 22 days. While the Sixers are still in good shape moving forward, they’ll have to find ways to correct their slow starts moving forward.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.