In the final game, Embiid missed the game, but Maxey still won the Nets. With both the Magic and Pacers winning, Philadelphia had no choice but to make the play-in tournament. Next up is a battle with the Heat for a spot, and to be honest, it's a do-or-die game for both teams. Because whoever loses will have to face the Celtics, who are the first in the league, and even miss the playoffs if they overturn in the second play-off game. Philadelphia coach Nurse directly said that Embiid didn't finish the game because he wanted to play the Heat with all his might.
Since his comeback, Embiid has been in good shape, scoring 37 points, 32 points, 30 points, 29 points and 24 points in five games. For Philadelphia's offensive and defensive bonuses, Embiid's presence allowed the team to take off. But even with the strength of the No. 1 center in the East, Embiid doesn't want to face the Green Army. Because the Green Army's style of play is very restrained Embiid, one Horford can make the Great extremely uncomfortable. Last year, Philadelphia's 3-2 lead over the Green Army was overturned, and Embiid laughed when the team was out.
This further illustrates Embiid's desperation and fear for the Green Army, in fact, Philadelphia's biggest goal is not to win the championship, but to break through to the division finals once. So the importance of the next game for Embiid is self-evident. If the Knicks are locked in seventh, Philadelphia has a good chance of winning the series. Then face the Bucks and Pacers winners, which could be Philadelphia's closest year to the Eastern Conference Finals. It's like Warriors player Dream Green said on the podcast.
The Heat don't want to face the Green in the first round, and with Philadelphia losing Harden, they have no chance of winning against the Greens.
"Neither the Heat nor Philadelphia want to face the Celtics, Philadelphia lost Harden and Embiid doesn't want to face the opponent who eliminated them last year alone," Green said. They all want to play the Knicks because the Knicks are a better opponent than the Greens. I think the next game against both teams is going to be a do-or-die battle, it's going to be a bloody battle, it's going to be a bloody battle to get away from Celtic. Personally, I think the Heat will win this game. ”
In the semifinals last year, Embiid was injured, but in the first game, Harden dreamed of returning to the Rockets, and he shot 17 of 30 from the field, 7 of 14 from three-point range, and 4 of 4 from the free throw line to score 45 points, 6 assists and 2 steals, leading the team to a 119-115 away victory over the Green Army, leading the opponent 1:0. Harden in that game was the opponent the Green Army feared in the past, and it was also the key to why the Nets were able to beat the Celtics 4-1 in '21. A healthy Harden is a huge threat to the Celtics.
Because what the Celtics are most afraid of is the big core with the ball, from being bullied during the James period, to being beaten by Harden once when he met the Rockets. The Celtics' style of play was just enough to be beaten to the soft underbelly by Harden, so in the series in which the Nets defeated the Celtics in '21, Harden played the most efficient first-round series in history. This comes from the fact that in the seven games against the Green Army last year, Harden scored 40+ points in both games.
There is also a game in which Harden efficiently won two double-doubles and relied on tandem to win, and now Harden is in an unstable state, so Harden only wanted to go to the Clippers last offseason, because Philadelphia couldn't win against the Green Army. If last year's Harden is replaced by an uninjured Nets Deng, or a peak Rockets Deng, Philadelphia is very hopeful of clash with the Green Army. Because without Harden, the Nets were swept 4-0 when they met the Green Army again. This is the embarrassment of Philadelphia, the core of the team is restrained by the attributes of the Green Army, and the team does not have a ball-handling core like Harden, it is more important for Embiid and Philadelphia to avoid the Green Army than anything else, and Embiid has no way back for this game of the Heat.