It's easy to imagine the Washington Wizards' eyes going wide after Joel Embiid left Game 4 early due to right knee soreness. They're definitely the weaker team. Props should be given to them after they took advantage of an Embiid-less 76ers squad. Reports reveal that the Cameroonian center is doubtful for Game 5.
If he indeed does not suit up, then there's a good possibility the Wizards will win another game to make it 3-2. While the 76ers have enough talent to close the series out, the Wizards' stellar performance in Game 4 was quite revealing. They identified weaknesses in the 76ers game and exploited them.
This will be the likely scenario in Game 5. More than exposing once again the weaknesses of the 76ers, the Wizards will also show off why they're a good team and why they deserve to be in the playoffs.
Wizards Will Smash 76ers in the Paint
The interior defensive and offensive statistics in the playoffs between the two teams are pretty close so far. The Wizards are shooting at 65.3 percent from less than five feet from the ring as opposed to the 76ers 68.8 percent. In terms of defense from less than six feet from the ring, the Wizards have limited the 76ers to 62.1 percent. Meanwhile, the 76ers have limited the Wizards to 61.8 percent.
However, you don't need to be a statistician to conclude that the 76ers are a weaker interior defensive team without Emiid in the fold. His heft and ability to challenge shots have been imperative all season long. Without him, Russell Westbrook, Rui Hachimura, and Bradley Beal can basically do whatever they want in the paint. Dwight Howard will be a challenge. But the man has built a hobby for collecting as many fouls as he can.
No Joel Embiid = Rebound Party for Westbrook
The Wizards are actually ranked eighth in rebounding (45.2 per game) in the regular season. This may be the reason why, despite their struggles in the other aspects of the game, the Wizards still qualified for the playoffs. In Game 4, the Wizards outrebounded the 76ers, 57 to 48. It's not a massive margin. But this is the direct effect of not having a big body like Embiid in the paint to box out and snag those boards. Westbrook himself had 21 rebounds.
For those who have been following Westbrook's career, snagging the defensive rebound and immediately running the fastbreak has always been his bread and butter. Westbrook gets disrespected a lot for seemingly padding his stats. People don't realize that he's one of the best rebounding guards in NBA history. Sure, he can be reckless at times. But his antics have created tons of opportunities for himself and for his teammates. In Game 5, if Joel Embiid is a no-show, expect Westbrook to rack up at least 15 rebounds with plenty of fastbreak opportunities.
Wizards Will Outrun and Outscore 76ers
Another interesting thing about the Wizards is that they're the number one fastbreak team in the league. In the regular season, they led the league with 24.9 points per game in transition. On the contrary, the 76ers ranked 20th in terms of transition defense. This is certainly a strange statistic considering that the 76ers are among teams in the league today and actually possess one of the top defenses overall.
Embiid mentioned before why he believes his team has one of the worst transition defenses in the league. From his observation, his teammates seem to have a knack for getting the offensive rebound. As a result, if a chunk of the players are inside the paint, then it would be a lot difficult for them to get back on defense.
It would be understandable to put the blame on Embiid — his playstyle and struggle to get back on defense asap — one of the main factors. However, we need to remember that Joel Embiid isn't just your typical post-up center of the old days. The man can shoot 3-pointers and drain perimeter shots. Theoretically, it would be easier for him to run back on defense. But without, Doc Rivers will likely field Dwight Howard who is a bigger liability on transition defense.
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