Joel Embiid Explains Logic Behind Returning in Game 2 vs. Celtics

After the Philadelphia 76ers suffered a blowout loss in Game 2 against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night, many questioned why the team allowed their MVP big man Joel Embiid to return to the court as he continues to deal with a sprained knee.

Without Embiid on the floor for Philly’s last two games before Game 2, the Sixers found success. In a Game 4 matchup against the Brooklyn Nets, the Sixers completed a series sweep in Embiid’s absence.

Then in Game 1 on the road against Boston, James Harden put on a spectacular 45-point performance, which allowed the Sixers to get a leg-up on the competition in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Many believed the Sixers would feel comfortable sitting Embiid on Wednesday night, hoping an additional two days of rest would help him heal even more before making his second-round debut this season.

However, Embiid suited up and checked in for the Sixers in Game 2.

“I’m okay,” the big man said after the game. “It felt pretty good to go up and down a little bit.”

As expected, Embiid wasn’t one hundred percent. There were clear signs of rust, especially as he adjusted to playing with a brace on his knee.

Overall, Embiid checked in for 26 minutes on Wednesday night. He drained four of his nine shots from the field and went 7-8 from the charity stripe. Embiid wrapped up the game with 15 points.

Offensively, the big man wasn’t at his best, but he was a force down low on the defensive end. With five blocks, the Sixers saw a noticeable boost down low on defense. Unfortunately, Boston made it rain threes, which helped them dominate the Sixers in the second half.

Considering the Sixers lost by 34 points, many questioned whether or not Embiid came back too early. Following the loss, the big man explained the logic behind getting back out on the court in Game 2 rather than Friday’s Game 3 outing.

“I was supposed to be out for four-to-six weeks or something like that,” Embiid explained. “I’m not gonna be one-hundred percent for the whole time, or I’m not gonna be fully healed for the whole time.”

In Embiid’s eyes, he doesn’t have enough time to take off and fully recover. So, if he’s able to move around and get the job done while pushing through soreness and playing with a brace, he would rather get back on the floor as early as possible to shake the rust off while the series was in the Sixers’ possession.

“It felt pretty good to play. I feel like I can help the team defensively and offensively,” Embiid added. “Obviously offensively, I wasn’t as aggressive. I was just trying to let the game come to me. Then defensively, I just protected the rim. I did a fine job when it comes to that.

“I just felt like being up 1-0 and just having the chance to go up 2-0 against this type of team, I knew they were going to come at us,” he continued. “I expected it, but anything can happen. I just felt like it probably would’ve been the same result as far as how I’m feeling if I came back for Game 3. Probably rusty and not myself, but I feel like I just got this out of the way.”

The Celtics evened the playing field on Wednesday with a dominant 121-87 victory. With the series tied at one, the two teams will meet in South Philly for the first time this postseason for Game 3 on Friday night. Considering Embiid didn’t suffer any setbacks on Wednesday, he seems destined to play once again on Friday.