Nicolas Batum admits he hated playing against Joel Embiid before joining the Sixers

Nicolas Batum played alongside All-NBA wings Kawhi Leonard and Paul George over the past three seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Now, he’s in a completely different situation as a member of the 76ers with 7-foot-2, 280-pound reigning MVP Joel Embiid as the focal point.

“My first seven years, I played with [seven-time All-Star post player] LaMarcus Aldridge,” Batum said, “so it made the game pretty easy for me. That was different, though. Oh, my God!”

» READ MORE: Sixers win fifth straight behind 48 points from Joel Embiid in 146-128 victory over Wizards

After his Sixers debut on Monday night, Batum revealed that he “hated” Embiid as an opponent.

“Jo is my guy,” he said. “I’ve known Jo for a while. We’ve got the same roots, from Cameroon. We’ve been friends for a while. But I used to hate being on the other side. Some guys you are just happy to be on his side.

“Like tonight, it was fun.”

Embiid finished with 48 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists in just three quarters during Monday’s 146-128 victory over the Washington Wizards at the Wells Fargo Center. The reigning MVP scored 29 third-quarter points on 10-for-10 shooting and made all nine of his foul shots. His 29 points were the most in a quarter in Sixers history. With a comfortable lead, the six-time All-Star sat out the fourth quarter.

“I’ve been there in a game like this, he had 40-something and 15,” Batum said. “It’s not fun, though. To be on this side, it’s cool.”

For Batum, it’s also cool to have a teammate who speaks French. For the French basketball player, it’s special getting to a new team and having someone speak his native language.

“You can get to know the organization in a different way,” Batum said. “When it’s the franchise guy, it’s even better.”

This marked Embiid’s sixth career game with at least 45 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. That’s tied for the 10th-highest total of such games in NBA history. The Sixers are 6-0 when Embiid collects that stat line.

His 29 points in the third were the most by an NBA player in a quarter this season.

Embiid joins Klay Thompson (37 points on 13-for-13 shooting on Jan. 23, 2015) and LeBron James (24 points on 10-for-10 shooting in April 11, 2008) as the only NBA players to shoot 100% from the field on a minimum of 10 attempts in a single quarter since the 1996-97 season.

With the commanding lead, Embiid sat out the fourth quarter for the second consecutive game.

“I want to play, but you know it also depends on the game,” he said. “Sometimes, I don’t need to play. Sometimes it’s good to apply that pressure and make sure we get up by a good margin before the fourth quarter. And then luckily, these guys have come in and have done a great job, not only holding it, but then also extending it. So, you know, it’s always good.”

Embiid, who said he wants to play in every game, called resting in fourth quarters old-school load management.

“So you know if we can do that every game,” he said, “I’ll probably have that chance.”