Sixers will need collective effort to ‘hold down the fort’ as Joel Embiid recovers from meniscus injury
The Sixers will rely heavily on Maxey and Harris in the immediate future, with a host of wings and bigs chipping in to replace Embiid's production while he recovers from the left knee injury.
SALT LAKE CITY — The 76ers are far from naïve. They realize there’s a tough task ahead of them while Joel Embiid is sidelined.
Yet they celebrated after defeating the Utah Jazz, 127-124, without Embiid Thursday night at the Delta Center. Tyrese Maxey was masterful, scoring a career-high 51 points hours after being named to his first All-Star team. Tobias Harris was a solid Robin to Maxey’s Batman, scoring 28 points. The undermanned Sixers (30-17) also received stellar production from a few unlikely heroes.
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And the team realizes it must continue to play that way without Embiid, who is out with a lateral meniscus injury in his left knee. As thrilling as Thursday’s victory was, the Sixers are aware that it was only their fourth win in 13 games without Embiid.
“We are going to have to out-tough teams, outsmart teams, outplay teams [and] play extremely hard,” Maxey said of holding down the fort without Embiid. “It’s going to be difficult, but we have the pieces to do it. Some guys [are getting] healthy. Some guys [are getting ready] to come back. We got some reinforcements coming back. That’s going to be good for us.”
De’Anthony Melton (lumbar spine stress response), Robert Covington (left knee bone bruise), Nico Batum (left hamstring tightness), and Marcus Morris Sr. (plantar fasciitis in his left foot) have also been sidelined with injuries.
Melton and Covington will remain sidelined for Saturday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets at the Wells Fargo Center. Batum and Morris are listed as questionable.
Melton said he’s hopeful to return Monday vs. the Dallas Mavericks. The shooting guard and team’s best perimeter defender has missed 10 straight and 13 of the last 15 games. Covington has been sidelined since Dec. 30.
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Meanwhile, Batum has missed the last two games after he was previously sidelined in late December for a left hamstring strain. Morris missed the last two and four games in a six-game stretch.
With all these injuries, the Sixers will rely heavily on Maxey and Harris in the immediate future, especially while Embiid’s sidelined. When he is back, the Sixers’ focus will return to a two-man game centered around Embiid and Maxey, with Harris serving as the third option.
“It obviously shifts up a gear,” coach Nick Nurse said. “We really need Kelly [Oubre Jr.] to now kind of make sure he’s involved. He’s got to kind of play the Tobias role. He’s got to be in the 16-to-20-plus [scoring] range. We got to make sure we get him in enough actions to do that.”
Oubre finished with 16 points Thursday, with 10 coming in the fourth quarter on 3-for-6 three-point shooting.
Mo Bamba, who was the backup center, blocked two shots, scored a timely basket, and had three rebounds while logging 7 minutes, 14 seconds in the fourth quarter. Bamba finished the game with four points, nine rebounds, and a team-high three blocks.
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Paul Reed, who started at center, had seven points, a team-high 10 rebounds, two blocks, and one steal.
“I told them before the game,” Maxey said, “I told Paul Reed and Mo together, I said, ‘If Joel is out for a little bit or however long he’s out, you got to hold down the fort.’ And I think they did a great job of that [Thursday night].”
And the Sixers will collectively need to do that until Embiid returns.