The Philadelphia 76ers are officially on the board in the Eastern Conference semifinals, beating the Miami Heat 99-79 on Friday night in Joel Embiid's return. The Sixers big man only had 18 points and 11 rebounds, but you could just tell the squad had much different energy with their star on the floor again.

James Harden echoed just that after the win. Via Lauren Rosen:

“We needed him, he showed up, he delivered. It’s not about him scoring 30 or 40 points – It’s about his presence. His presence alone gives us energy.”

The Sixers know they're a legitimate contender when Embiid is playing. He gives them fire and confidence. It was extremely evident in Game 3 on both ends of the floor. With his epic black mask, the MVP finalist gave Doc Rivers a huge boost on both ends of the floor, helping Philly hold the top-seeded Heat to a mere 79 points.

It's officially a whole new series with Embiid in the mix again for the Sixers and he even said himself following the contest that he is only going to get better moving forward. His presence inside also completely shut down Bam Adebayo, who only had nine points. He was showing out in the first two games of the series.

Miami is legit. They will bounce back. But it's now clear. The Heat will not have an easy road to the conference finals because Joel Embiid is standing in the way.