Joel Embiid has had a noteworthy stretch of scoring performance over the last two days. The Process put up 42 points to beat the Hawks on Saturday, but Embiid saved his career-best performance for Sunday against the Utah Jazz.
The former Kansas Jayhawk posted a career-high 59 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, and seven blocks in 36 minutes to lead the 76ers to a 105-98 win over Utah. Embiid also scored 26 of Philly’s 27 points in the fourth quarter, plus five of his seven blocked shots over the final frame on 7-8 shooting from the field.
The only shot Embiid missed was a turnaround from three that Embiid admitted was a heat check after a brilliant fourth quarter of play.
59 POINTS FOR JOEL EMBIID.
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) November 14, 2022
He also had 11 rebounds, 8 assists and 7 blocks. pic.twitter.com/qEnxTTrmCT
Coach Doc Rivers, who’s coached or played in nearly 3,000 regular-season and playoff games, said he’s “never seen a more dominating performance” from a two-way perspective. Postgame, Embiid credited his teammates for feeding him the ball and his coaching staff for putting him in prime scoring positions.
“This is not about me,” Embiid said, per ESPN. “We did it as a team. Obviously, the coaches put me in those positions, and my teammates fed me the ball.
“I thought we had great spacing around everything we were doing — Like I said, all the credit goes to my teammates.”
Joel Embiid is up to 54 points tonight. 20 of the Sixers’ 22 in the 4th. (via @sixers) pic.twitter.com/t14wh4dexW
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) November 14, 2022
Embiid’s elite two-game stretch set the following records, according to ESPN:
• He became the first player with at least 50 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and five blocks in a game since blocks became an official stat in 1973-74.
• He became the first player to register at least 20 points and five blocks in a single quarter in the past 25 seasons.
• He became the first player to outscore both teams by himself in a fourth quarter (26-21) since Tracy McGrady in 2006.
• He became the fourth player — along with Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Bradley Beal — to score at least 100 points across a back-to-back since the NBA-ABA merger, and the first center to do so since Wilt Chamberlain in 1967.
Embiid’s teammates applauded his monstrous two-way performance. P.J. Tucker believes that Embiid’s effort on the defensive end was “bigger than all the points he scored.” Tyrese Maxey recalled that when Embiid really had it going, he told Rivers that the 76ers should simply “get the ball to (Embiid)” instead of running a pick-and-roll.
The 76ers have now won two games in a row and are looking to extend that win streak to three when they host the Bucks on Friday.
