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PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid's two-way dominance continues to make things easy for the Philadelphia 76ers. To win their fifth straight game, the Sixers easily dispatched the Washington Wizards behind a dominant effort from the big man.
Embiid was dominant on both sides of the ball against the Wizards. He scored 34 points on 12-21 shooting while tallying four blocks in three quarters as he helped build up a lead so big that he didn't have to play in the fourth, which he loved. The Sixers had Embiid guard Daniel Gafford, meaning that he could roam closer to the hoop and be in an ideal position to alter shots. That tactic works wonders for Philly and is something that Embiid is more than happy to do.
“Yeah, I think it makes sense with our team,” Embiid said when asked if he likes being a roamer. “Just someone that can protect the rim. We got a lot of guys I like to be aggressive and then we have a lot of breakdowns defensively so if you're gonna have your best rim protector on a stretch five, probably doesn't make a lot of sense or they gonna have a lot of wide open layups. It makes sense for the team. So whatever works, you got to keep doing it.”
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The Sixers have used Embiid specifically as a roamer plenty of times before. His most notable minutes in that role came in Philly's win over the Denver Nuggets where he played off of Nikola Jokic, letting P.J. Tucker rough Jokic up while he clogged the passing and driving lanes, and against the Utah Jazz where he took over the game and recorded seven blocks along with 59 points. He also played as a roamer against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday when he “guarded” Matisse Thybulle and was able to make some key plays in the second half.
In the end, Joel Embiid wants to win and establish the Sixers as an elite defensive team. “Defense comes first when it comes to me,” he said. “So whatever I can do to help on that end, that's always the focus.”
