Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers wasn’t playing like his normal self on Tuesday night.
The big man was needed in a huge way as his team attempted to gain a 3-2 advantage over the Miami Heat.
In the end, that didn’t happen – and it wasn’t even close.
The 76ers eventually lost 120-85 and are now on the verge of being eliminated from the playoffs.
Joel Embiid was -29 in Game 5, his worst plus-minus of his postseason career. pic.twitter.com/CnCniR19d5
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 11, 2022
As for Embiid, he was -29 in the game, the worst plus-minus of his postseason career.
The 76ers are clinging to life in this series now and they obviously can’t survive another game with Embiid playing like this.
Needing Embiid
Embiid ended up recording 17 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal during his 33 minutes on Tuesday night.
During his three games since returning from injury, Embiid has attempted 13 or fewer field goals for each game.
However, during the regular season, he was averaging 19.6 field goals per game.
That’s obviously quite the drop-off.
You can’t blame the man for being a bit timid on the floor right now since he is still recovering from a very painful concussion.
If he is hoping to get his team back on track, Embiid will need to be much more aggressive.
In fact, the entire team will need to step it up because everything is on the line now.
The good news is that the next game will be in Philadelphia and the home crowd will add a huge boost for the 76ers.
Plus, Philly will come out swinging because they are surely unhappy with how Game 5 went down.
You can expect some fireworks from Embiid and his squad in the next game.
But will it be enough to keep their playoff hopes alive?
NEXT: Joel Embiid Left Confused By MVP Results