After picking up a hard-fought win in Miami on Saturday night, the Philadelphia 76ers traveled to the nation's capital for an afternoon meeting with the Washington Wizards.

In the end, Washington came away with the victory on their home floor. Behind an array of contributors, they took down the Sixers by a final score of 117-98. Here are some observations from the matchup.

Philadelphia 76ers Observations vs. Washington Wizards

3. Perimeter defense 

Due to injuries, the Sixers find themselves incredibly thin at the wing position. The absence of Matisse Thybulle and Danny Green also left them without a pair of their top defenders. From the opening minutes of the contest, it was clear they were missed on Monday. 

Washington has a plethora of perimeter threats, and unfortunately for the Sixers, they had few options on slowing them down. While nobody on the Wizards had a huge outburst per se, multiple players made the defense pay on the outside. 

The Sixers' troubles defending on the outside Monday drew a lot of comparisons to their loss against the Charlotte Hornets last week. Opposing teams that have an array of players who can put the ball on the floor and get to the rim have been their kryptonite.  

2. Young player steps up with big assignment 

Following a run on a 10-day contract, Charlie Brown Jr. impressed the Sixers enough to upgrade him to a two-way deal. During that time, most of the flashes he showed were on the defensive end. 

Due to being so thin on defenders, the 24-year-old was tasked with a large assignment. After the opening minutes of the game, Brown Jr. was put on the floor to be the primary defender of Wizards' All-Star Bradley Beal. 

For someone relatively new to the NBA, Brown Jr. held his own on Beal. There is no slowing down a premiere talent like Beal, but he did his best to make life as miserable as possible for the potent scorer. His combination of quickness and length made him the best option for such a tough defensive matchup. 

The young prospect deserves a ton of credit. Brown Jr.'s window of opportunity at the NBA level has been cracked open, and he is not letting this chance go to waste. 

1. Joel Embiid can only do so much 

While this wasn't the best outing for the Sixers as a whole, Joel Embiid continued his dominant stretch in Washington. The All-Star center ended the afternoon with 32 points and eight rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the floor. 

There is no denying Embiid has done everything he can to lead the charge for the Sixers, but at the end of the day, he is only one player. For this team to really turn the corner, others need to step up and contribute as well. A lack of production from the supporting cast was a major factor in their downfall in Washington. 

When all was said and done, the Sixers had just two players crack double figures. Tyrese Maxey broke this plateau with 18 points but did not do so until late in the third quarter. Tobias Harris and Seth Curry, the Sixers' other key contributors, combined for only 15 points on 7-for-20 shooting. 

Embiid certainly can keep the Sixers in games with his transcendent play, but they cannot expect to stay in the win column when the players around him cannot do their part as well.