Sixers vs. Phoenix Suns takeaways: Joel Embiid is tired; James Harden’s absence negatively impacting bench

PHOENIX — Joel Embiid needs a day off.

The 76ers’ mounting injuries have had a negative impact on their bench. And now’s the time to take a look at Dewayne Dedmon.

These three things stood out in the Sixers’ 125-105 loss to the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center.

Embiid has only missed two of the Sixers’ last 35 games despite being hampered with various issues and injuries. He’s averaged 33.2 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, and 34.0 minutes in what is one of his longest stretches of games played during his career.

So it wasn’t surprising that the MVP candidate was sluggish in Saturday’s loss. As a way to get some rest, Embiid didn’t participate in his normal pregame workout routine around 45 minutes before the game.

» READ MORE: For Sixers coach Doc Rivers and Joel Embiid, it’s all about being healthy for NBA playoffs — not seedings

He did manage to finish with 28 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks in 32 minutes, 16 seconds. But it was obvious that Embiid, who was dealing with right calf tightness, was worn down.

“I’m going to need one [game off] pretty soon,” Embiid said. “It’s two things. Like I said, it’s all about [being healthy] for the playoffs. You know, like tonight, I was very sloppy. Usually when I’m sluggish and sloppy that means I’m tired. Like you said, I’ve been playing a lot of minutes, I’ve been playing every single game.

“So to add to that, dealing with the calf and whatever the foot, I think at some point you gotta look at the bigger picture, which is the playoffs, obviously.”

Embiid also has been dealing with left foot soreness.

The ailment sidelined him in the Sixers’ road victory over the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 21. He’s played in the following 11 games despite being listed as questionable. Embiid also missed four games earlier in the season with a left mid-foot sprain.

“They talked to me about missing one very soon,” he said. “So now I just see how my body feels tomorrow and then go from there.”

The Sixers bench struggled mightility for the second straight night.

The team was outscored, 53-17, in bench points after being outscored, 54-14, in that category in Friday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors.

But a lot of the Sixers’ bench woes are a result of their roster being depleted because of injuries. Saturday. marked the third straight game that James Harden was sidelined with left Achilles soreness, Danuel House Jr. has missed the last two games with right shoulder soreness. And Jalen McDaniels returned Saturday after missing the previous two games with a bruised right hip.

» READ MORE: Joel Embiid praises Doc Rivers for changing Sixers’ culture and mentality after ‘The Process’

“We’re not going to overreact to it,” coach Doc Rivers said of the bench’s second straight poor outing. “We’ve got guys out that are starting so you can’t overreact to it. Clearly, it’s hurt us in the minutes Joel has been off the floor, but we didn’t play well. We didn’t move the ball today.”

Like against the Warriors, the Sixers’ ball movement was stagnant. It’s hard for them to win playing that way.

“Watching them move the ball and watching us not move the ball was really tough from a coach’s eyes,” Rivers said. “You know, we played last night, they played last night, so no excuses. We just didn’t play well. We were flat, no doubt about that. The best thing is we got guys out early and got them some rest.”

Rivers called on Dedmon to sub out Embiid with 2:25 remaining in the third quarter instead of Paul Reed. While Dedmon had two blocks and two rebounds, he was a minus-13 in 9 minutes, 22 seconds of action.

So why did Rivers make the decision to go with Dedmon?

“Just needed some life,” the coach said. “The first group in the first half gave us nothing. We have Dedmon here. We need to get him some minutes to see what he can give us.”

Best performance: I had to give this to Tyrese Maxey in a losing effort. The Sixers guard bounced back a dismal fourth quarter against the Golden State Warriors Friday night to score 37 points Saturday on 14 of 19 shooting, including making 7 of 11 three-pointers. Maxey has now scored 20-plus points in five consecutive games.

Worst performance: I’m giving this to Georges Niang. The Sixers reserve forward struggled on both ends of the court. One of the team’s top shooters, he had four points on 1-for-4 shooting, missing both of his three-pointers. Defensively, he was a liability. Niang was minus 29 in 23:30.

Best defensive performance: Bismack Biyombo gets this one. The Suns center blocked a season-high tying five shots and grabbed 13 rebounds to go with 17 points.

Worst statistic: This goes to the Sixers reserves shooting. The bench shot 4 of 20 shots combined.

Best statistic: This goes to the Suns three-point shooting. They made 15 of 32 three-pointers on the night.

Worst of the Worst: The Sixers are losing ground on Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics in regards to contending for the Eastern Conference regular-season title. The loss dropped the third-place Sixers four games behind the first-place Bucks and two behind the second-place Celtics with eight games left.