What exactly does Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid mean when he says that he and James Harden can't win alone?

While far and wide are debating that on social media, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard couldn't help but chime in himself. However, though the athlete-slash-rapper isn't necessarily a man of few words, just one was sufficient in this moment:

“Huh?”

The Sixers were just bounced from the 2023 NBA Playoffs, with Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum taking over in the second half of Game 7 and finishing with an eye-popping 51 points. Philadelphia would lose the game by 24 points, with Embiid and Harden scoring a combined 24 points.

To that point, that is “why basketball is played 5-on-5.”

A team sport, all five players — in fact, all 15 players — are supposed to do everything in their power to get their team a win. Whether that's practicing hard, developing their game, improving their basketball IQ or actually going out in the game and producing.

However, Embiid saying that he and Harden “can't win alone” and that they “need everybody to find ways to be better” almost sounds like an effort to shift the blame away from himself and Harden, the only two All-Stars on the team. A soundbite made even worse by the memory of Embiid winning the 2023 NBA MVP award.

Though several members of their supporting cast could have had better games, the blame falls squarely on Embiid and Harden, who shot just 8-29 from the field combined. Furthermore, had Embiid been a better defensively when guarding the paint or out in space, Tatum may not have had so much success against them.

For the Sixers sake, hopefully Embiid recognizes that, and this is all just a big misunderstanding.