On January 22, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued, and the Philadelphia 76ers played against the Los Angeles Clippers at home. The Clippers' duo, Little Card and George, are both recuperating, but Coach Lu always seems to have a "brilliant plan", and their record has always remained in the top eight in the West, and they can create some small surprises from time to time. A few days earlier, the Nuggets had been upset by the Clippers with a 25-point lead. The farce between the 76ers and Simmons still has no answers, and frequent injuries plague the team, but with the Emperor present, they are still a strong team in the East. In this game, the Clippers made a good start, establishing a seven-point lead in the first quarter. Embiid and Maxi combined to score 23 points in the second quarter, while the Clippers scored just 16 points in the quarter and the 76ers scored 21 points in a single quarter. By the third quarter, the 76ers extended their lead to 24 points, but then it was the highlight, and the Clippers were all soldiers, and it took only 10 minutes to reverse the score. In the end, the 76ers lost to the Clippers 101-102.
The Clippers' dubbing of the "little strong man who can't die" is well deserved. Little Card and George are not there, Reggie, Batum, Little Morris, Kennard, Kofi these people have long been used to, and seized the opportunity to grow into a daredevil to fight and take responsibility. More crucially, opponents never know who will stand up and carry the team, occasionally Reggie, occasionally Kofi, occasionally Zubac, and occasionally Batum. In this game, the Clippers broke out in unison, and the entire team scored in double figures, leaving the 76ers' defense to lose one or the other. With 25 points to reverse the Nuggets and 24 points to reverse the 76ers, the Clippers became the only team to complete multiple 24+ reversals in the new season. As Tyronlu said: Perseverance has become the motto of this team.
On the 76ers side, Simmons did not play, Curry Jr. was absent due to injury, Harris and Maxi joined forces to cut 39 points, 15 rebounds and 14 assists, and both were 0 mistakes. Embiid was even more fierce, playing 36 minutes, shooting 15-of-25 (3-of-3 from three-point range), 7-of-10 from the free throw line, and blasting 40 points, 13 rebounds , 6 assists + 1 block for the luxurious stats. According to statistics, this is embiid's 12th time in the past 13 games to cut 30+, and it is also his 19th single game of the new season to cut 30+, second only to Old Jan (20 times); at the same time, this is the fifth time that Embiid has cut at least 30 points + 10 boards + 5 assists in a single game in the new season; what is more powerful is that after entering 2022, Embiid's average score per game (33.4 points) is higher than the average playing time (31.1 minutes), and the efficiency is extremely impressive.
There is no doubt that the Emperor's recent sustained highlights are enough to prove that he deserves to be added to the MVP discussion. On the offensive end, Embiid's ability to hold the ball is particularly prominent, both can dribble the ball to stop the jump shot, but also can play low back and single, and the ability to create fouls is first-class. In his own words, if I want to, I can play like Kobe, Jordan, Dirk or O'Neal; in Tyrenlu's words, he seems to be able to score 80 points in this game without wrapping embiid. On the defensive end, the emperor's height, arm length, defensive habits and awareness are the top level of the league's inner players, he is not afraid to engage in physical confrontation with any level of interior players, he can also pounce on the outside defensive small defender, and can also use the same speed as a defender to chase the scorer who bursts into the box. In the latest issue of the MVP rankings, the emperor rose to third place, behind Jokic and Alphabet Brother, which is the best affirmation for him.
Harris, Maxi and Embiid have all played so well that the 76ers have suffered a 24-point comeback, which is somewhat inexplicable. According to statistics, the 24-point reversal is the largest point difference in the 76ers' history since the 96-97 season. When the 76ers lost the game senselessly, and the opponent was Rivers' former owner, the Clippers, and the painful playoffs two years ago were intertwined with the big drama of the reversal led by Tyrren Lu a year ago, countless fans naturally remembered a proverb: Rivers' team is the easiest to reverse. In a post-match interview, when Rivers was asked if the team's reversal was related to the coach, he said disgustingly: Would you ask Popovich this question? You won't, so don't ask me either.
I wouldn't say that the 76ers' crushing reversal required Rivers to back the pot, but one thing is for sure, this is the Rivers we are familiar with, and he did not disappoint! I say this on three main lines: First, There is no doubt that Rivers is the championship manager. Even if the 76ers lack major generals, All-Star master Simmons has not played 1 game, he can still lead the 76ers to 26 victories, which is not easy; second, Rivers relies too much on stars, and the handling of details and the ability to respond to on-the-spot command are far less sharp than Tyrrenlow. Especially when the team is suddenly in adversity, he lacks the courage to take the side of the sword; third, Rivers likes to throw the pot. The team suffered a big reversal is very demoralizing, the performance of the main stars is impeccable, if the manager does not take responsibility, is it necessary for young people like Kokmaz and Isaiahgio to bear it?
There's no doubt that with the Big Man in place, Rivers is enough to bring the 76ers into the playoffs. But the 76ers' goal isn't just for the playoffs, they have to be more resilient. As Embiid said after the game: we need to prepare more carefully, we need to be focused at all times, we need to understand our tasks. That's right, the 76ers can't squander the talent of the Emperor anymore, they must deal with Simmons' problem as soon as possible, exchange it for immediate combat power, and win in the moment! As the saying goes, it is reluctant for a child to be a wolf. If the 76ers insist on the lion's big mouth, the 76ers may not be able to do anything this season.