Knicks Don't Benefit as Much as It May Seem With Joel Embiid Out

Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns controls the ball against Joel Embiid. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Knicks' preparation for Game 2 has taken a major turn just hours before tip-off, as 76ers star Joel Embiid has been ruled out Wednesday with both ankle and hip injuries. The big man was clearly laboring on Monday, which New York took full advantage of, but his sudden absence is still an unforeseen development.

Though Embiid being out sounds great in theory, there are actual, real downsides for the Knicks when considering this series as a whole.

Joel Embiid's Game 2 absence likely makes Knicks' lives harder in reality

New York quickly identified a recipe for success in the series opener, which was finding Embiid when the Knicks had the ball and exploiting his lack of mobility. Sometimes an overwhelming defender given his size, Embiid was reduced to a mere traffic cone that Mike Brown's players could get around easily, put in pick-and-rolls, or beat off the ball to great success.

Karl-Anthony Towns went 4-of-5 and added three assists in Game 1 when matched up against Embiid. The beleaguered big also helped fuel Jalen Brunson's big night, with the guard going 3-of-4 and adding an assist. Both Towns and Brunson knocked down a pair threes versus Embiid as well, showing how much he struggled to affect shots even while standing on the perimeter.

This juicy offensive equation for the Knicks changes without Embiid in the mix, though. While he has a gravity of his own, him playing at less than even 50% on defense made the Sixers worse off as a whole. Philadelphia would rather go down with the ship if he's active, so it prevented any in-game adjustments.

Now, though, Nick Nurse can plug others in at center and expect his team's level of defense to improve. That makes matters more difficult for the Knicks, who were able to coast in Game 1 by taking advantage of Embiid.

There's also the fact Philly has an element of surprise it can use to throw New York off as well without Embiid available. Both Adem Bona and Andre Drummond were leaned on when Embiid missed the first three games against Boston in the first round. Instead of planning around what Embiid opens up, there are two guys who could be in the game at any moment, and either has their own different skill set.

Embiid replacements bring variety

Bona, in particular, presents more of a defensive challenge. He owns the second-best defensive rating (100.0) on Philly in this year's playoffs, and gave both Jayson Tatum (36.4% FG percentage) and Jaylen Brown (33.3%) trouble in the first round. The second-year pro also racked up four blocks in three starts without Embiid against the C's, and that kind of shot altering is an element the Knicks weren't seeing with a hobbled Embiid.

Now on the plus side, neither Bona nor Drummond is a strong offensive threat. The latter had more success in that area to open the playoffs, logging 10 and 12 points early against the Celtics, but Boston also lacked New York's size. Considering how dominant Embiid can be in the paint, along with forcing his way to the free throw line and getting opponents in foul trouble, those elements will be sorely missed by Nurse.

But, this also allows the 76ers to gameplan around the players who have more juice on that end right now anyway. Paul George, in particular, has turned heads with his performance (17.4 PPG, 3.0 APG, 56.5% from deep) this postseason. Kelly Oubre also looms as someone who could get hot after starting the playoffs on a quieter note (9.6 PPG).

This current Sixers squad has shown they're great at adapting to Embiid being on the bench, too. Over their last seven road games without Embiid, Philly is 5-2. They've averaged a staggering 118.1 PPG in those contests, so their offense can't be expected to fall out, and they maintain their presence on the boards (47.6 RPG during this stretch), which is another way to control games without their star.

That gives Philadelphia confidence in Game 2, and it also makes them a threat even if Embiid's absence turns into a multi-game one. There's also the fact that this time to rest may set the imposing big to come back even stronger and turns things in the Sixers' favor, like he just did against Boston.

This allows him precious time to rest and recover, while introducing the real possibility of bringing a spark as soon as Game 3 to make his team even more dialed into its mission. That makes it crucial the Knicks don't mess around and repeat their previous mistakes of dropping past Game 2s. Otherwise, the 76ers could head back to Philly with things tied at 1-1 and still having the Embiid return card to play against New York.