Despite offensive struggles, Doc Rivers happy with Joel Embiid vs. Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are just one of those teams that give you trouble. They are a team that has been around for a long time and they know how to attack and make a guy struggle.
For Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid, they just know where his very few weak spots are and they will send waves of defenders his way. On Tuesday, they sent double and triple teams towards him and he finished with 18 points on 3-for-13 shooting and he shot 11-for-12 from the line. He also committed six turnovers in what was just an overall tough night.
Despite all of that, coach Doc Rivers was happy with how Embiid handled the double teams in the win.
“He did, overall,” he explained. “I thought down the stretch, we got a little loose with the ball, but overall, I was fine. It’s a great example and we missed some again some great shots. I thought we had a chance to have a high-scoring night with them taking the ball out of Joel’s hands.”
The Sixers did a better job shooting the ball than they did on Sunday, but there were still some open looks that they were just not able to knock them down. The team did commit 18 turnovers and Embiid had two of them down the stretch in the fourth, but by that point, Philadelphia had the game in hand.
“The turnovers hurt us,” said Rivers. “They forced 18, but overall, I thought Joel was great with the ball, made the right decisions. We made the right decisions. That’s how you win games.”
This is all still a work in progress for the big fella and it is something that he will still need to figure out as the season wears on. The team will return home on Thursday to host the Dallas Mavericks for his next test.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
