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Newly minted MVP Joel Embiid missed Game 1 of the Eastern conference semifinals against the Boston Celtics. The Philadelphia 76ers went on to a 119-115 upset win riding on James Harden’s 45 points.
The Sixers also won Game 4 against the Brooklyn Nets without Embiid in the first round of the playoffs. Embiid is set to return from his knee injury absence in Game 2 on Wednesday.
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Embiid has missed a lot of time due to injury during his career in Philadelphia. The Sixers have an all-time record of 72-89 without Embiid since he entered the league in 2014.
The center struggled with injuries, especially in the beginning of his career. He missed the entirety of his first two seasons with the Sixers. He then played just 31 games in his first active year. He has never played a full 82-game season. His career high was 68 games in 2021-22.
Joel Embiid posted a career-high 33.1 points per game, leading the NBA this season. He also shot a career high 54.8% from the field in his MVP year.
The 29-year-old missed 16 regular-season games this season and the Sixers went 11-5 record without the big man this season. They are now 2-0 in the playoffs without the MVP.
How did the Sixers play against the Celtics with Embiid?
None of the 16 games, Joel Embiid missed this season were against the Celtics. The Sixers went 1-3 against the Celtics this season.
Boston won those games by a combined 21 points. Embiid performed well in those games despite the losing record.
The MVP averaged 36.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists in four games against Boston this season. He had a monstrous performance in the Sixers' 103-101 win in April. Embiid put up 52 points on 20 of 25 shooting. He also grabbed 13 rebounds and dished out six assists. The defensive stalwart also added two blocks.
Joel Embiid also played great in the Sixers' 110-107 loss in February. He put up 41 points and 12 rebounds in the loss.
He poses a matchup problem for most teams, but the Celtics enjoy smaller lineups which means Embiid could have a big game on his return.
The Sixers are trying to win their first NBA title since 1983. They have not made the NBA Finals since 2001. Embiid is trying to become the first player to win the title and MVP in the same season since Steph Curry in 2015.
