Embiid’s Heroic 3pter Puts the Sixers up 3-0
By Dylan MacKinnon
And that is why Joel Embiid should be the MVP. This game was not pretty. At times it was very ugly. But not only did the big man drag this team back into this game, he hit the miraculous game-winner in overtime. You can use any metric you want. And you can bring up stats no one has ever heard about, but what Embiid did tonight shows why he is and continues to be the best player in the NBA. His performance helped push the Sixers one step closer to a sweep of a Raptors team many national pundits thought would upset the Sixers. Embiid’s Heroic 3pter proved them all wrong.
It took until the 3rd quarter for Embiid to get involved. But once he got involved, he did so in a big way. He played the entire 3rd quarter, scoring 18 pts, and pulling the Sixers to within 1 pt. Embiid seemed to be nursing an injury on one of his fingers throughout the quarter. But that did not slow him down. Embiid powered though and kept the Sixers in this one.
But it was in overtime when he truly played the role of a hero. The Sixers did not have James Harden, who fouled out late in the game. They lost the lead late in OT with a questionable foul call leading to FTs for the Raptors. It almost went all wrong. An ugly possession forced Doc Rivers into a timeout. They had just .9 seconds left on the shot clock. And then this happened.
You all know what the Play of the Game is tonight. Here is Tom McGinnis's call of the Real MVP's Game Winning 3pter, and the eventual win. Sixers are up 3-0 in this series. pic.twitter.com/tMY2AEbEvz
— 975TheFanatic (@975TheFanatic) April 21, 2022
There are no words for how good Embiid is. Who even cares at this point how many turnovers he had in this game. He stepped up when it mattered. Embiid finished with 33pts, 13 rebounds, and shot 12-20 from the field. he hit three 3pts. One was of course the game-winner. But another came in the 4th. It was another one of those ridiculous fadeaway corner 3pters he seems to have a knack for recently to tie the game.
Embiid’s Heroic 3pter puts the Sixers up 3-0. They will look to close out the series on Saturday at 2pm. If Embiid is half as good as he was late in this game, the Sixers should be leaving Toronto with a Sweep.
