3 observations: Joel Embiid leads Sixers past Pelicans, win 7th straight

The Philadelphia 76ers returned home on Friday to host the New Orleans Pelicans and they once again faced a shorthanded team as they were missing stars, Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson. Philadelphia was able to build up a comfortable lead, but the bench did not play well again as they allowed New Orleans to take a lead in the fourth.

The starters then had to enter and rally and they were able to walk away with a seventh straight win 109-107 over the Pelicans after a defensive stop late. Joel Embiid was terrific again and led the Sixers with 37 points and 13 rebounds as New Orleans did not have an answer for him at all.

Tobias Harris was huge late and added 17 points, Seth Curry had 16, Ben Simmons had eight, 10 assists, and nine rebounds. George Hill added 11 off the bench.

Here are the three observations following a win at home:

Embiid looking healthy

During this final stretch of the season, the important part is making sure that the stars are looking right and getting ready for the playoffs. For Philadelphia, that means Embiid first and foremost as he is the engine that is going to drive this machine into the playoffs. He was questionable entering this one, but he looked good from the beginning. He had 14 points in the opening quarter and he was able to run the floor as he had a ton of energy. He was dominant for Philadelphia and he looked good in this one. With now five games left in the season, the Sixers should make sure that he gets enough minutes to be in a rhythm, but also enough rest to where he is fresh and ready to go. The No. 1 seed is essentially wrapped up as they have a lead of three games on the Brooklyn Nets and they also hold the tiebreaker. They just have to make sure their guys are ready to go.

Ball movement

This is normally a tell-tale sign to see how the Sixers are doing on offense. In this one, the ball was whipping around as Simmons continues to set the tone in that area as usual with the starting unit. He continues to push the pace to be sure Philadelphia is in a position to excel on the offensive end and he is able to create the open looks the rest of the team needs on offense. The second unit was then able to keep it going which is something that they have struggled with in recent games. They were able to get some good play out of Shake Milton, initially, who ran a solid pick-and-roll game with Dwight Howard as the two of them hooked up for some easy baskets for the veteran big man. However, the third quarter then came around and the bench unit was not able to have similar success. That allowed the Pelicans to get back into the game and take the lead.

Tying up loose ends

What this means is that the Sixers have to rely on the other players to make sure that they have the deep run in the postseason the plan to make. That means guys like Curry, Hill, and Danny Green all have to be at their best heading into the postseason to give Simmons, Embiid, and Tobias Harris the help and support they need on offense heading into the postseason. While they will go as far as the stars will take them, they will need the supporting cast to play well. This is the best Curry has looked since his torrid start to the season in December and January and he has to take this into the playoffs for Philadelphia. It’s so important to their offense in terms of spacing and making sure the stars can handle their business. Hill is also continuing to make an impact on this team as he has proven to be a solid pickup at the deadline for Philadelphia as he is a calm veteran who plays physical basketball.

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