Philadelphia narrowly defeated the Heat 109-105 to win three straight games, win the key card battle, and the team is currently 42-35 and ranked eighth in the East. One win away from the sixth-place Pacers and 0.5 wins away from the seventh-place Heat. It is worth mentioning that the next Philadelphia schedule is the easiest compared to the Pacers and the Heat. Philadelphia played: Grizzlies, Spurs, Pistons, Magic, Nets. Even if it can end a wave of 8 consecutive wins, then Philadelphia's record will be 47-35 and the rest of the East is firmly in sixth.
This year, Philadelphia is aiming for the Eastern Conference Finals, and sixth is a good position. It is worth mentioning that Embiid has helped the team win two consecutive victories after returning on April 3, which is also the first time that the team has won three in a row since January 23. Maybe that's the value of Embi, when a team's core is injured, morale tends to be low. It's okay for you to let a role player play 10 games, but you can't play it all the time. Embiid's addition is a shot in the arm because he gives the team confidence, and his value on both ends of the floor can make Maxey better and Oubre easier because the pressure is on the team.
The blessing in disguise is that Embiid missed the MVP because of his injury, which made him no longer have psychological baggage. After the game, Embiid talked about the loss of the MVP that was supposed to be a certainty, and laughed that this glory has been poisoning him. Because he wanted to get another one, he was in a state of exhaustion all the time, both mentally and physically. Sometimes physical injuries are tough, but now Embiid can focus on getting back to full health before the playoffs.
In fact, Embiid this season is a bit like Harden in the 18-19 season, at that time Harden said that he didn't like to let go of the game to score 40 points, and he preferred to play the Warriors pass and cut the ball. But there is no way that the team needs him to score high points, because Paul Gordon Capela is all injured, the difference is that Harden is more physically tolerant, so he carried it, but Harden, who was overdrawn like this in 19 years, did not win the MVP. Before Embiid's injury this year, he averaged a terrifying 36+10+5 per game and did not lose 19 Harden, and even scored 70 points against the Spurs before winning. Now Embiid has just woken up from a dream, just like Harden said before, he has no conflict with his Philadelphia teammates, but he has a conflict with someone.
It wasn't easy for Philadelphia to win the Heat today, and their terrifying defense in the final quarter left Embiid at a loss. In the opening game, the Heat did not target Embiid, which allowed Philadelphia to attack the mercury. Maxey returned from injury and was unusually brave, Embiid was also hot, at least in the first half, Philadelphia was the stronger side, Embiid and Maxey were unstoppable. The Heat trailed Philadelphia 55-63 at halftime. But in the second half, the Heat survived, and Philadelphia played steadily in the first half, but as soon as it relaxed, the Heat played a 10-0 climax and fell behind into the final quarter.
In the final quarter, the Heat almost knocked the game to pieces, and the effect of the joint defense was more difficult to deal with than expected, and the Heat instantly stretched the difference to 8 points. At the moment of life and death, Maxi and Oubre fired, and the two scored consecutive points to withstand the pressure to regain a one-point lead. After that, the game went into a white heat, and the two sides went back and forth. Embiid has a terrible touch on the offensive end, but it does help on the defensive end. In the end, Butler missed a three-point shot, and Maxi successfully saved the Lord. The Heat Rozier had 22 points, Bam Adebayo had 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Butler had 20 points.
On the Philadelphia side Maxey, Embiid Oubre is an absolute hero, Maxey 37 points, 9 rebounds and 11 assists, Embiid 29 points and 4 rebounds, Oubre 18 points, 8 rebounds and 2 steals. Lowry's 8 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists are still okay, Reed has 5 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks, and Batum has 4 rebounds, 7 assists and 2 steals. Philadelphia is actually stronger than last season, and Lowry is certainly not as good as Harden, but the playmaking and defensive aspects can fill the void of Harden's departure. Then Oubre is flexible in the No. 3 position, able to attack and defend. Today, Philadelphia will start Embiid and Batum at the 45th position, Oubre at the third position, Lowry and Maxey in the backcourt. Harris is really not worth much, and if Philadelphia can't grab George in the offseason, they will definitely go all out to keep Oubre and then renew Maxey.