NBA 2018-19: 3 Talking points from the Toronto Raptors win over the Philadelphia 76ers
The Toronto Raptors handed the Philadelphia 76ers their 13th consecutive loss in Canada, with a 113-102 victory in this game. The Raptors showed resilience in bouncing back from Monday's loss to the Nuggets and improved to 11-3 at home while developing an NBA-best 21-5 record atop the Eastern Conference.
This Philly loss to Toronto also means that the latter has won 20 of the last 22 games since the start of the 2013-14 season.
Let's focus on some key takeaways from this showcase of two of the Eastern Conference’s elite teams.
#3 Joel Embiid did not look like the dominant entity we know
Embiid has been solidifying his early case for the MVP award by averaging career-high numbers this season, but this game did not fall in place for him.
Although he finished with a double-double, his contribution provided little-to-no help for his team. He finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds, shooting a miserable 5 of 17 (second worst of the season) from the floor. He could not make a single three-pointer (he attempted four) and missed the only pair of free-throws he got throughout the night. And to insult to injury, he played a wholesome 36-minute game to put up such downcast numbers.
This is what he had to say about his performance after the game:
"We throw the ball alot, and we gave up a lot of offensive rebound .. and I suck. Man, I wasn't making anything. In fact, the past few games I have been trash .. So, got to figure that part out if I want to help the team win some games."
Well, he was being a bit too hard on himself as the stats suggest he has been averaging 24.3 points per game for the previous 10 games. But nevertheless, keeping in mind the benchmark he has set for himself this year, it can be considered relatively bad and it did play a huge part in the Sixers' downfall against the might Raptors.