Sixers' Joel Embiid Has Golden Touch, Trash-Talking Tongue in All-Time Great Game

Embiid has golden touch, trash-talking tongue in all-time great performance originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Joel Embiid’s touch was golden Sunday night.

And so was his trash-talking tongue. 

With the Sixers holding a five-point lead over the Jazz at Wells Fargo Center and 20.5 seconds remaining, Utah’s Lauri Markkanen stepped to the foul line. Embiid already had a career-high 57 points (he’d later add two more free throws), plus a career high-tying seven blocks and eight assists. He trusted his gut, even if it didn’t entirely align with the truth. 

Embiid brought two-year-old son Arthur into the picture. 

“I kind of lied, because Arthur is already sleeping,” Embiid said after the game. “I was like, ‘I’ve got to put Arthur to sleep, so you better miss those free throws. You don’t need to go to overtime.’

“I did lie because Arthur, he goes to bed. (My partner Anne de Paula,) she don’t play around. Every single day, 7:30, he has to be in bed. But I just told him I had to put Arthur to sleep and to make sure we didn’t go to overtime.”

The Sixers did not need an extra session on the second leg of a deeply satisfying back-to-back. Markkanen missed both foul shots, they earned a 105-98 win over the Jazz, and Embiid ended the weekend with 101 points on 53 field-goal attempts, 21 rebounds, 14 assists, nine blocks and three steals. 

The night epitomized Embiid, from the array of skills to the mischievous inclinations to the frequent uncertainty regarding whether he’ll be available to play. That was a fair question pregame for Sixers head coach Doc Rivers after Embiid went 40 minutes Saturday night and then detailed left ankle and right shoulder issues.

“Yeah, I think (he’s playing). I don’t know yet, but I think so,” Rivers said with a laugh.

As a player, Rivers shared the floor with Hall of Fame centers Patrick Ewing and David Robinson. He also faced Hakeem Olajuwon during a playoff series in which the big man recorded a 42-point, nine-rebound, eight-assist, five-block stat line. 

In Rivers' experience, Embiid’s performance was unparalleled. 

“I’ve seen a guy score a lot of points,” Rivers said. “I haven’t seen a guy score a lot of points, rebound, and then block shots. That was impressive. He was getting everything. So, ‘No’ is the answer. I’ve never seen a more dominating performance, when you combine defense and offense.”

Rivers also played alongside Dominique Wilkins, whose single-game career scoring high was 57 points. A couple of weeks ago, he recalled that his Hawks years instilled a core play-calling philosophy: Never abandon something the defense hasn’t proven it can stop.

“It changed,” Rivers said of his approach. “(Atlanta head coach Mike Fratello) called all the plays, and that was clear. But as you went on, he did give you a couple things. I know the set to this day — Hawk 52 Down.

“When that play worked, we were running it again and again and again. And there were five options, and if you didn’t stop it, we were just going to hammer you with it. And then even when they stopped it once, we’d run it again just to check to see if that was a fluke.”

Embiid’s mid-range game and foul-drawing instincts were especially sharp Sunday — he drew 24 of the Sixers’ 26 free throws — but his game didn’t feel fluky.

“Tonight, those shots that I took, I usually make them,” he said. “And some nights I’m going to miss them. So I’m just happy that they went in."

Just in case it was necessary, Embiid kept making sure to dial his own number, according to P.J. Tucker. 

“They’re all for him anyway,” Tucker said. “It’s just which one do you want to run?”

Tyrese Maxey, the Sixers’ No. 2 scorer with 18 points on 8-for-24 shooting, also understood that nothing convoluted was necessary for the team's offense.

“It’s funny,” Maxey said, “at one point Coach was trying to run a play — a pick-and-roll play — and I was like, ‘Let’s just give the ball to Jo.’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, I agree.’ … One thing our team really has an awareness of this year is when someone has it going, we’re trying to feed them.

“Georges (Niang) had it going when we were playing Phoenix, and everybody was looking for him. … Whenever somebody has it going, we’re trying to find them and trying to get them the best possible shot available. I think our coaching staff did a really good job of doing that.”

Maxey’s usual backcourt mate was a joyful spectator. Sitting his fifth straight game out with a right foot tendon strain, James Harden stood out on the Sixers’ sideline wearing an all-green fleece outfit and absorbing the action next to Sixers assistant coach Sam Cassell.

He embraced Embiid after the final buzzer, sported a big grin, and later tweeted “1 of 1 …” 

Back on Jan. 30, 2018, Harden posted 60 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and four steals. That outing is fourth in NBA history in terms of “game score,” a statistic created by John Hollinger to capture single-game production. Embiid’s evening now ranks seventh. 

“It’s absurd,” said Matisse Thybulle, who started a second consecutive game and picked up five steals. “Actually, my friends were texting me after the game and they were like, ‘It’s like an (NBA 2K) stat line.’ It’s not one of those things you see in a real basketball game. It’s like when you pick one player on 2K and just do everything with them. It’s pretty ridiculous. It’s amazing.”

Beyond the numbers, the folks who watched Sunday will remember Embiid’s ability to carry a team that did little to help offensively besides feeding him. Outside of Embiid, the Sixers shot 21 for 55 (38.2 percent) from the floor and 3 for 18 from three-point range. Embiid assisted all three of those makes.

The MVP runner-up played a self-assured version of “hero ball” that certainly wasn’t selfish, knowing he’d ultimately benefit from sometimes passing on tricky, tightly contested jumpers. He also highlighted his zero second-half turnovers. 

“I think the biggest thing he did tonight was trust his teammates,” Maxey said. “It’s funny I say that when he had (almost) 60 points, but he made certain passes out of triple teams, out of double teams. And we missed some shots, as we do, but he trusted us. He threw one to me that I missed. I think he threw one to (Danuel House Jr.) that was big. 

“And that keeps the defense honest. So now it’s like, ‘Ah, he may pass it, he may not.’ And now he’s got a chance to go one-on-one. I think that was the biggest thing he did tonight, other than his defensive presence.”

With quite a few more postgame press conference reps under his belt than Maxey — and a steadily rising volume of dad reps, too — Embiid summed the night up nicely when asked about how he felt physically. 

“I’m feeling great," he said. “Body feels great, my mind is perfect, life is good. Basketball is not my whole life. I’ve got a beautiful family. That’s what matters the most. As long as I have that, that’s all that matters.”