How 76ers Rationalize Playing Joel Embiid With Series Lead Over Celtics

BOSTON — The 76ers quickly took the edge over the Celtics, snagging their home-court advantage away from them in Game 1 and striking first to begin their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

With Joel Embiid sidelined since Philadelphia’s first-round matchup with the Brooklyn Nets, stealing away a win from the Celtics in Boston should be all more reason not to play the league MVP in Game 2, right? Even if healthy and cleared by the team’s medical staff, why even risk tossing Embiid out there?

Well, 76ers head coach Doc Rivers, who understood the precautionary sentiment, had a simple explanation for potentially upgrading Embiid to active for the first time in 13 days.

“That’s logical thinking, but players, when they’re healthy, should play. When they’re not, they shouldn’t play,” Rivers said. “That would be my answer so I guarantee you if Joel is playing, he’s healthy. If he’s not playing, he’s not. I don’t get involved in it a lot, honestly. I leave that up to smarter people than me to decide. But we’re not gonna risk him for anything.”

Granted, the 76ers had time, thanks to both their urgency to put the Nets away early (in four games) and Boston’s struggles with the Atlanta Hawks. But even despite making easy work of Brooklyn, when Philadelphia arrived in Boston and underwent pregame practice ahead of Game 1 on Monday, Embiid was sluggish and clearly still affected by his knee injury, struggling to comfortably take mid-range jumpers in shootaround.

Rivers, who hinted at the possibility of restricting Embiid upon his return, is fully confident in leaving Embiid’s health status in the hands of Philadelphia’s medical team, who will solely be responsible for giving the 29-year-old the green light.

“If you had asked me two days ago, yeah I would say tonight — if he plays — I’d be surprised,” Rivers explained. “But watching him move the last couple of days, if he plays then they say he’s good.”

If the 76ers needed any sign that playing Embiid might not be necessary for Game 2, they should look no further than Game 1. With an MVP down, Philadelphia had no issue leaning on former league MVP James Harden, who proved that there’s still plenty of explosive offense left within him, reminiscent of his days with the Houston Rockets.

With the 76ers in the driver’s seat heading into Wednesday night’s Game 2, it’ll be up to the Celtics to show some sense of urgency — with or without Embiid.