Last week, Joel Embiid had some personal stakes in each of the 76ers’ two wins.
Against his former teammate Ben Simmons on Wednesday, Embiid went for 26 points, eight rebounds and two steals as Philadelphia snuck by Brooklyn in a highly-anticipated matchup.
On Saturday, it was evident that Embiid had a statement to make. After not being named a starter in the All-Star Game, the star center had a monster outing: 47 points, 18 rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks. He also hit the dagger over fellow MVP candidate Nikola Jokic.
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Joel Embiid’s Case for the 2022-23 NBA MVP]
Saturday’s win not only made a statement about Embiid’s MVP case; the 76ers also took down the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and now are just 2.5 games back of the East’s first seed.
This week, things will ease up for Philadelphia.
While the Magic certainly have developed some young talent, it seems that they’re not quite ready to compete for a playoff spot.
At just 19-31, Orlando is the 13th seed in the Eastern Conference. This season is about giving their young stars playing time, and finding out who will be a part of their future.
At the center of that is No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero. The current favorite for the Rookie of the Year award, Banchero is averaging 20.5 points and 6.3 rebounds this season.
The Magic will head into Philadelphia hoping to pull off an upset or two, as the two teams meet at Wells Fargo Center on both Monday and Wednesday.
Orlando is coming off two losses in a row: one to Miami on Friday, and one to Chicago on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Sixers have won seven straight, are 20-4 in their last 24 games and may just be the hottest team in basketball right now.
On both ends of the floor, Philadelphia is getting the job done. Outside of the outstanding performances from Embiid so far this season, James Harden’s playmaking and secondary scoring have put him into strong All-Star consideration.
One smaller storyline to watch this week between the Magic and Sixers will be Markelle Fultz playing in Philadelphia. The 2017 No. 1 pick played in two seasons for the 76ers, struggling to find his footing amid injury issues.
Fultz is enjoying a bit of a comeback story in Orlando after missing more time the past two seasons. He is averaging 12.1 points, 5.6 assists and 1.4 steals in 27.9 minutes per game.
After wrapping up a home stand with the two games against the Magic, the Sixers will start a three-game road trip on Friday when they take on the Spurs in San Antonio.
The Spurs are 14-36 on the season and will be near the forefront of the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes by the end of the season.
Among the few bright spots this year for the Spurs has been 23-year-old forward Keldon Johnson. In 44 games, Johnson is averaging 21.8 points and 4.8 rebounds.
One storyline to watch in San Antonio over the coming weeks will be if they decide to sell a lot at the trade deadline; many teams will be coveting center Jakob Poeltl, who has become a good shot-blocker.
The 76ers and Spurs met once earlier this season on October 22. San Antonio won 114-105, despite 40 points from Embiid.
After a tough week in terms of matchups, Philadelphia should have a light week if everything goes according to plan. Because of this, we could see a rest day or two for Embiid, or even Harden to keep them both healthy and energized for the next few weeks.
Stay tuned for more breaking NBA content, including trades, contract updates and more news from every team.
Featured image courtesy of Julio Aguilar/Getty Images
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