'Damn joke': NBA world slams Ben Simmons-less 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers have been shredded by the NBA world after going down to the Boston Celtics in the first game of their first round playoff series.
Facing an uphill battle without former number one pick and Australian star Ben Simmons, the 76ers nonetheless defied a turnover-riddle first half to lead the more highly fancied Celtics by four points heading into the final quarter.
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In that crucial final frame though, Philadelphia’s offence sputtered to a halt as superstar centre Joel Embiid, widely expected to carry the 76ers attack in Simmons’ absence, hoisted just four shots in the last 12 minutes.
He hit just one, a three-pointer from the top of the key, in a poor final quarter in which Boston outscored Philadelphia 34-22 and went on to win 109-101.
Embiid finished the game as the 76ers top scorer with 26 points and 16 rebounds, but they had no answers for Boston duo Jayson Tatum (32 pts, 12 reb) and Jaylen Brown (29 pts).
Fans and pundits turned on the 76ers nevertheless, ripping into the team for not getting the ball to Embiid more when the game was on the line.
Joel Embiid’s 4th Quarter Shot Chart is a damn joke! No excuses!
Got get him the ball down low! pic.twitter.com/nce9IUrouO— Marc Farzetta (@MarcFarzetta) August 18, 2020
Joel Embiid only taking 15 shots in that game when Boston had no answer is a pretty big indictment of, well, everything Philadelphia this year.
— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) August 18, 2020
Philadelphia really can win this series, but boy do they have to get their act together.
Silly mistakes and a failure to get Embiid the ball.— Chris Walder (@WalderSports) August 18, 2020
Joel Embiid unhappy after NBA Playoffs loss
Embiid had five turnovers from Philadelphia’s total of 18, with the Celtics benefiting by scoring 21 points as a result in the first-round opener.
"Obviously not enough [shots]," Embiid – carrying the load with Simmons sidelined for the remainder of the season – said afterwards. "I've got to be more aggressive.
"Maybe we need to call some more plays but I don't know. That's another thing we've got to fix going into game two."
Championship hopefuls and sixth seeds the 76ers, who are looking to progress beyond the Conference semi-finals for the first time since losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2001 NBA Finals, face the Celtics in game two on Wednesday.
"I've got to do more. I got one job to do, to carry us," Embiid said. "I'm going to need my team-mates to help but I need to do more.
"I've got to take more shots, I've got to be more aggressive, I've got to help my team-mates."
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