Philadelphia 76ers: No Embiid, no problem for Simmons and the Sixers

While it’s never fun to play without Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons led the Philadelphia 76ers to their second straight win over the Brooklyn Nets in a 131-115 blowout.

Something tells me Jared Dudley isn’t going to have much to say following the Philadelphia 76ers‘ second straight blow out win over his clearly outmatched Brooklyn Nets, and who was the star of the game yet again?

Oh yeah, none other than ‘average halfcourt player’ Ben Simmons; who went off for 31 points, four rebounds, nine assists, two steals, and three blocks in 38 minutes of action.

Wow.

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And most impressively of all, he led the team to victory without his homegrown superstar foil Joel Embiid.

That’s right, after being a game-time decision for both Game 1 and Game 2, Embiid finally took a game off as the 76ers took the show on the road to play their first of two straight games in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, and really, his absence wasn’t felt too bad.

I mean sure, it’s never fun to be without a 7-foot-plus behemoth in the paint capable of dropping a 27.5 and 13.6 double-double without breaking a sweat, but the Sixers played fast, loose, and fast, turning the court into a glorified, full-court track meet.

But speed wasn’t the only reason Philly won, far from it.

After being trapped in a polar vortex offensively in Game 1, the 76ers offense was on fire in Brooklyn; with J.J. Redick and Tobias Harris combining for 11-15 from 3 point range for 55 points on 36 shots.

Really, what more could you ask?

Despite receiving near constant boos, especially when Simmons handled the ball, and hearing thunderous chants of ‘Jimmy’s Leaving’ which I’ll admit was a bit creative, the Sixers held their heads high and attacked Brooklyn regardless of how expansive their lead was on the scoreboard.

Outside of the team’s starting five, filled out with Greg Monroe at the five, who accounted for 111 of the team’s 131 points, the Sixers actually got pretty substantial contributions from their three-man reserve unit of Mike Scott, James Ennis, and Boban Marjanovic, who accounted for 20 points in 61 minutes of action.

Now granted, that’s a far cry from the Nets’ 57 reserve points scored in large part by Caris LeVert, but with a starting five as potent as the 76ers, even with Embiid on ice, clearly the 76ers don’t need a potent second unit to remain competitive.

With Philly now up 2-1, the 76ers will have a chance to win the series outright on their home court if they are able to secure their third straight W on Saturday, in a 3 pm, 4/20 ‘Brooklyn Beatdown’ that will hopefully feature Embiid back at center.

Jared Dudley should be a 2019 free agency target. dark. Next

Could the Nets still pull out a win, and take the series deep into next week? Sure, they do have a potent collection of guards capable of putting up 70 points in a game, but after struggling to take on Kenny Atkinson‘s backcourt in Game 1, Brett Brown has figured this series in a way he never quite did last year. Buckle up Philadelphia 76ers fans; it looks like your hometown club is heading to the second round in five.