PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Orlando Magic behind the stelar efforts of Joel Embiid. He scored 28 points, which is a below-average game for him, but he completely owned the game. The Sixers big man made right play after right play against a tough Orlando squad that previously game him a lot of trouble.

Last time against the Magic, Embiiid got flustered by the the aggressive double-teaming. This time, he worked quicker and with more urgency. After sensing the double in the post, he either snapped a pass or made a quick move to the basket. The Sixers big man knows just how to operate when the double-team comes.

“I think everybody knows that my mentality, the first thing that I think about when I got the ball is to try to go score,” the Sixers superstar said. “So, when you get in double, I think one of the main things [is] you want to get the ball closer to the rim whether it's rim running or dunking it. Especially at the end of that first quarter, being in the bonus, that was more motivation to be more aggressive…When you know you get a double, you've got to put yourself in those positions to get easy baskets and I did that. When I wasn't close enough to the basket, I felt like I made the right play.”

Making the right play is what it's all about for Embiid. Some of his passes out of the double didn't show up in the box score but they ignited ball movement that found an open shot. When he looked to score, he went right through the Magic's bigs (especially Moe Wagner) to get close shots and free throws.

Joel Embiid and James Harden, who notched 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, led the Sixers back into the win column. Their ability to shine together has been a key development for the Sixers this season. While most of it is Harden feeding Embiid, the inverse could very well be true as Embiid navigates double teams well and Harden continues to shoot catch-and-shoot triples.