Despite being on the brink of elimination, Philadelphia 76ers forward Jimmy Butler is standing up for teammate Joel Embiid. The big man had yet another disappointing outing, posting only 13 points and six rebounds while committing a game-high eight turnovers in a 125-89 rout at the hands of the Toronto Raptors.

Embiid was bothered by an upper respiratory infection for the last two games of the series, both of which were underwhelming efforts compared to the Game 3 outing he had, which was the best of this last string of games in the second round of play.

Butler, who led the Sixers with 22 points, noted the team will “ride or die” with their big man:

“Not concerned, man,” Butler said of Embiid, according to ESPN's Dave McMenamin. “We're going to ride or die with big fella. Everybody around this locker room knows that. Everybody in the world should know it. The fans should know it.”

“We'll be just fine. We're going to keep doing what we're doing, encouraging him to keep battling through all the injury, through all sickness. And we're here with him.”

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Embiid could be dealing with this infection for weeks, or he could be at the back end of it — that all depends on how soon his system can clear it out.

The 7-footer has been hooked to an IV prior to the last two games and has clearly been a shadow of his old self, with his energy clearly lacking throughout the game.

The Sixers' postseason hopes start and end with Embiid, so his teammates are hoping he can overcome this untimely illness on Thursday and help them force a Game 7.