Doc Rivers says Joel Embiid needs to be more dominant for Sixers
CAMDEN, N.J.–The Philadelphia 76ers returned home following a disappointing 3-game road trip where they dropped all three games and they dropped to .500 with the latest loss coming against the Houston Rockets.
The biggest stat that stood out in the last two losses of the road trip was the rebounding struggles as the Memphis Grizzlies and the Rockets both just outmuscled and out-hustled Philadelphia on the glass.
This makes one wonder about what Joel Embiid is doing out on the floor when it comes to rebounding. The big fella stands at 7 feet tall and it should be easy for him to just pluck rebounds down and allow the Sixers to gain possession. He only had two rebounds in the first half of Monday’s loss to Houston and had seven for the game.
“That happens,” said coach Doc Rivers. “It does happen. It can be he’s away from the basket. I didn’t watch that game and see that he wasn’t rebounding in the first half, I just saw he didn’t have any rebounds, but that can happen.”
With that being said, the Sixers will go as far as Embiid takes them. They need him to be at his very best on a nightly basis and he is going to be the one who has to be able to lead the way for this group.
“We need him to be more dominant every night,” said Rivers. “Defensively and offensively and I think he will. When we get everybody back, I think it helps him.”
Maybe it will. When the Sixers have a full team again, maybe that will trigger Embiid to do more out on the floor. With the team so short-handed recently, it has been tough for him to have to go out there and do everything, but as the leader of this group, he has to be able to step up when the time calls for it.
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