In May 2022, the Philadelphia 76ers lost 2-4 to the Heat in the series to stop the Eastern Conference semifinals, and the G6 loss at home made Joel Embiid very unhappy, and he had another unsuccessful season in his career. After the game, he said something frustrated, both dissatisfied with the team's signings and fond of Jimmy Butler.
At that time, Joel Embiid's inner ambition was eroded, and the wish he made with Ben Simmons hand in hand in the afterglow of Boston was long before it disappeared - "we want to win multiple championships together". Time is really interesting, just there staring at passers-by and waiting for them to make it or go crazy......
And time is always there, and it is never time itself that changes, but the people who chase it.
Joel Embiid's dissatisfaction with the team is also partly due to Jimmy Butler, who briefly played for the 76ers for less than a season, but Joel Embiid greatly admired the tough guy. The 76ers didn't keep Jimmy Butler, and Joel Embiid was a little unhappy with management, and later brought in P.J. Tucker to increase the team's hardness.
Thanks to James Harden's salary cut, the 76ers signed P.J. Tucker, which can be regarded as an explanation for Joel Embiid, "Well, this is the tough guy you want, is it thicker than the one named Jimmy Butler?...... And you see, their 'origins' are all Miami, so it should be no different. ”
Joel Embiid has always flaunted tough guy attributes, and he has a natural admiration for tough guy temperament, and although Shaquille O'Neal often mocks him for being too soft, Joel Embiid has not been affected.
Two years later, they met again, and Joel Embiid's 76ers finally won.
With Joel Embiid out injured and missing some time, the 76ers finished with an eight-game winning streak and only finished seventh in the East, while the Heat finished eighth in the East. For the Heat, they probably don't care who their playoff opponents are, and last season the Heat qualified for the playoffs as play-in tournaments and made it all the way to the Finals.
However, this time the Heat failed to beat the 76ers to quickly lock up the playoff spot, and Jimmy Butler was unfortunately injured before the end of the first quarter, and he played the whole game with an injury and did not play well, and the Heat unfortunately lost to the 76ers. Joel Embiid finally won against Jimmy Butler this time, but the Heat still have a chance to advance if they can beat the Bulls in their next game.
Interestingly, the Heat finished eighth in the East by beating the Bulls last season.
And all of this is closely related to Jimmy Butler's injury, according to a report from well-known NBA reporter Shams after the game, Jimmy Butler may suffer a medial collateral ligament injury, which could leave Jimmy Butler out indefinitely. It was a bolt from the blue, and Spoelstra didn't know what else to do?
Speaking about his injury after the game, Jimmy Butler said: "I can't do much on both ends of the floor and I think it's hurting our team more than it helps the team. ”
Clearly, Jimmy Butler wasn't happy with not being able to help the team. He played 40 minutes in the game, and contributed only 19 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists on 5-of-18 shooting, in addition to 5 steals (free to watch live sports and replays). Link3）。 Jimmy Butler worked hard to lead his team to victory, but he did not have enough power in the center of this game.
If Jimmy Butler doesn't play in the next games, the playoffs will be a little less fun.
(Text/Yan Wuqiang)