Joel Embiid had NBA Twitter buzzing after the 76ers’ season-ending loss Sunday at TD Garden.
Philadelphia no-showed in the final game of its Eastern Conference semifinal series with Boston, and its two best players were particularly lousy in the winner-take-all showdown. Embiid and James Harden combined for only 24 points in Game 7 whereas the Celtics’ best two players, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, combined for 76.
Embiid after the game stressed his need to improve, but the 2023 NBA MVP followed up by saying he and Harden “can’t win alone.” This headline-grabbing remark forced Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard to scratch his head.
Again, Embiid took some ownership of the 76ers’ latest postseason shortcoming and didn’t dump all of the blame on his teammates. However, the six-time All-Star probably should have limited his postgame comments to a self-assessment and not pointed any fingers. This hardly was the first time Philadelphia needed the star big man to rise to the occasion in the playoffs and he didn’t deliver.
Embiid obviously isn’t going anywhere this offseason, but the same can’t be said for just about everyone else in the 76ers organization. Don’t be surprised if the 29-year-old has a new head coach and a different-looking supporting cast next season.
