Subscribe
Follow Us
The Philadelphia 76ers were on the receiving end of quite a beating at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday nights. While most folks thought this was going to be a battle for the ages between two top contenders in the East, it turned out to be a disappointing 129-100 lopsided loss for Joel Embiid and his Sixers.
The biggest story around the contest wasn't actually the game itself, though. It was all about Ben Simmons making his first appearance in Philly, albeit on the Nets bench. After the game, Embiid opened up about the Simmons narrative and how it affected the context of the highly-anticipated matchup. As it turns out, Embiid wants to move past the issue as soon as possible:
“I mean, even before the game, I was already tired of all that drama and all that stuff,” Embiid said, via Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “I didn’t think it was warranted. I just wanted to really get it over with. I wasn’t into it at all. I just want to play basketball and try to win the basketball game we were playing in.”
It sounds like Embiid did everything he could to drown out the noise. This was/is extremely difficult considering how this issue was literally the talk of the town. As a matter of fact, virtually every single NBA news outlet had a story about Simmons' return to his former stomping ground.
As for Embiid, though, he would much rather keep his eyes on the prize. It's all about winning for him and he could not care less about anything else:
“Honestly, I wasn’t focused on the outside noise and whatever people were talking about or really the fans going back and forth,” he added. “I’m glad we passed it.”
Then again, you have to note that Embiid himself also played a role in stoking the fire with his actions right after Ben Simmons was traded to the Nets. Being the self-proclaimed troll that he is, the Sixers big man decided to post a hilarious meme on Twitter to commemorate his ex-teammate's departure. Naturally, social media exploded as it pointed out just how delighted Embiid was now that Simmons was finally out of the picture.
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) February 10, 2022
Be that as it may, the Sixers still suffered a gutting loss to Brooklyn. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and the rest of the Nets dominated Philly on their own home court throughout the contest, leading the game from wire to wire. It was far from the show many of us expected.
Embiid himself admitted that his Sixers weren't ready for the Nets' onslaught:
“It was one of those games,” Embiid finished. “We didn’t come prepared enough and we didn’t make enough shots and we didn’t play defense.”
That's actually quite an odd thing to say considering how this was one of the biggest games of the regular season for the Sixers. I mean, they had more than enough time to prepare for this. They must have marked their calendars for this one right after Simmons was sent to Brooklyn.
At the end of the game, this is just one loss for Philly. What cannot be denied, however, is that it could have major implications on the Sixers' title hopes this season. Ben Simmons wasn't even playing and the Nets still blew them out in Philadelphia. What happens when these two teams face off again with the former Rookie of the Year in the mix?
These two teams are no longer scheduled to battle each other in the regular season so perhaps a matchup in the playoffs could be forthcoming? Now that's something I'd definitely pay to see.
