Sixers vs. Raptors takeaways: Joel Embiid reaching Wilt Chamberlain status; Tobias Harris is alive and well

Joel Embiid keeps surpassing milestones in what could be a historic season.

Tobias Harris is reemerging as a scoring threat. And as good as Embiid, Harris, and Tyrese Maxey are, the 76ers’ championship hopes could be determined by selfless plays Robert Covington and Danuel House Jr. continue to make.

Those three things stood out in the Sixers’ 121-111 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday at the Wells Fargo Center.

Embiid finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists, and four blocks in what has become an average night for the reigning MVP. It was his 32nd straight 20-point game, dating back to last season.

Hall of Famers Allen Iverson (57) and Wilt Chamberlain are the only players in franchise history with longer streaks.

But that’s nothing.

Averaging 35.0 points in 34.2 minutes, Embiid is on pace to join Chamberlain as the only NBA players since the 1954-55 season to finish with more points than minutes played. Chamberlain averaged 50.4 points in 48.5 minutes for the Philadelphia Warriors during the 1961-62 season.

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If Embiid played the 48.5 minutes that Chamberlain played, he would be averaging 49.9 points.

He has also scored in double figures in 160 straight games, dating back to the 2020-21 season when he scored six points in a loss at Miami on May 13, 2021, while playing 25 minutes, 19 seconds.

On Friday, Embiid started off slowly, scoring just two points in the first 20:40 of the game, but still managed to dominate.

“I think I took two shots in the first six or seven minutes, but I keep mentioning it, mentioned that comment a few times, just let the game come to me,” he said. “I didn’t force anything, even after a few turnovers, slow starts, I didn’t force shots. [It] came to me, and then in the third quarter, I just found a bunch … and made a few shots.”

He scored 17 points in the third quarter on 6-for-9 shooting.

Harris showed that he’s a legitimate third option when he’s being aggressive. The power forward had struggled in the Sixers’ previous 11 games. Some will point to the struggles being a result of not getting the ball while Embiid and Maxey excelled in their hard-to-stop, two-man game.

But in reality, Harris has struggled in large part because of a lack of aggressiveness.

He didn’t have that problem against the Raptors (11-17).

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Harris created scoring opportunities by not standing stationary in the corner while waiting for the ball. He moved around and Embiid and Maxey found him. He also got out on the fastbreak and crashed the boards.

His 33 points — on 12-for-23 shooting — were the most points Harris scored since Jan. 25, 2022, nearly two years ago.

“He was great,” Embiid said. “He was decisive. He wasn’t thinking about it. He either had a shot or he drove, quick decisions. When they collapsed, he made the right play. That’s how he has to play every night.”

House and Covington combined for three points and four rebounds. However, they were both plus-15 while providing stiff defense and energy while being glue guys for the Sixers (20-8).

“I thought House Jr. especially came in and just played really hard,” coach Nick Nurse said. “He was just running hard, rebounding hard, fighting hard. [Covington] started fighting. They weren’t perfect, but at least they raised the level of our fight and our compete.”

House scored the three points. He also had a rebound and an assist in 22:59 of court time. Covington filled the stat sheet with three rebounds, two assists, one steal, and a block in 24:06.

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It all came on a night when Embiid, Harris, and Maxey (33 points) became the first trio of 30-point scorers in franchise history since Hal Greer, Dick Barnett, and Dolph Schayes did it for the Syracuse Nationals in 1961.

“They are going to be the ones that are shooting,” Covington said of Embiid, Maxey, and Harris. “You need people that are going to fill in the roles. We know what we bring. We don’t care about scoring.”