Joel Embiid reacts to being subbed out due to fouls leading to Hawks run
The Philadelphia 76ers were in a defensive struggle with the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday for the most part. The Sixers had a tough time finding an offensive rhythm as they finished with more turnovers than assists and they shot just 6-for-30 from deep.
That type of production led to a 104-95 loss to the Hawks and it sent Philadelphia to a 5-7 record on the season.
Joel Embiid, who had a solid night of 26 points and 13 rebounds, was subbed out late in the third quarter when he picked up his fourth foul. With Paul Reed in the game rather than Embiid, the Hawks went on a big 25-11 run to end the quarter and that allowed them to take control.
“Joel got those fouls,” coach Doc Rivers told reporters. “Really tough call for me. He had four fouls to leave him in, if he gets his fifth, now you’re one foul away. That one hurt us as well.”
Embiid gave his own thoughts as he told reporters:
“I think I’m smart enough to not foul,” he added. “But I thought that’s probably when the game changed. They went on that run, and we could never get it back. …
“I trust whatever my teammates and my coaches say. Tonight, it just happened to be, at the time, probably the wrong decision.”
The Sixers will look to bounce back when they host these same Hawks on Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center.
