Joel Embiid dominates as the 76ers take down the Lakers: 3 takeaways

The Philadelphia 76ers took their process to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers, and it was as good as advertised.

This game started off with the 76ers red hot. They led by as many as 13 in the fist quarter, and they were led by their playmakers Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. The 76ers shot 50 percent in the first quarter, and it could have been better had they not shot 2-of-9 on 3-pointers. Only the Golden State Warriors average more assists than the Sixers this season, and they had 15 in the first half.

Even though the Lakers started off about as bad as you possibly can, both offensively and defensively, they did close the first quarter on a 15-5 run. The Lakers shot 35 percent from the floor, and only trailed by three at the end of the first because of their bench. After the starting unit was blitzed by the Sixers, Luke Walton went to the group that brought home the victory for them in Phoenix on Monday.

Jordan Clarkson came off the bench and made an immediate impact as he’s done all season. He led all bench scorers with nine points in the first half, and played some good defense. As for Lonzo Ball, well, he’s had better games only recording two points and one assist in the first half.

The biggest moment of the first half came when Kyle Kuzma tried to end Joel Embiid’s entire career in the second quarter. He didn’t finish the dunk, but had he finished it he would have without a doubt broken Twitter.

The second half was tightly contested. The Lakers shot poorly all night, but stayed close mostly because of free throw shooting and 16 turnovers for the Sixers.

In the end Joel Embiid was too much for the Lakers to handle. Lonzo Ball sat in the fourth quarter for the second game in a row, but he wasn’t the only starter to ride the pine in the fourth quarter.

This game definitely showed that the future of the NBA is bright.

Takeaways

Brandon Ingram has taken a big step in his second year: Lost in the “hype” of this matchup was the clear improvement of Brandon Ingram. After an up and down rookie season it almost seemed like people had forgotten about him. Ingram finished Wednesday’s game with 26 points and 11 rebounds.

Ingram is almost 7-feet tall with a wingspan that’s much longer. This season he’s learned how to use that length to his advantage, in a similar fashion to Giannis Antentokoumpo. Obviously it’s not the same results, but you can see the similarities.

He can shoot over the vast majority of people that guard him, and his long strides makes it easier for him to cut down the distance between himself and the basket. Those long strides mean nothing though if he can’t stay under control. When Ingram goes to the basket he’s become very adept at absorbing contact and staying under control as he goes up for shots.

Although he’s only shooting 43 percent from the floor, and 30 percent from 3 you can see the confidence building in Ingram. He had his moment in the Lakers game against the Wizards a few weeks ago where he was the one who took the last shot to tie the game.

Ingram will continue to get better, and as he gets better so will the guys around him.

This is Joel Embiid’s world, we’re just living in it: The Sixers look like a playoff team in a weaker Eastern Conference, and Joel Embiid is the main reason for that. Embiid thoroughly dominated the Clippers on Monday, and did the same thing to the Lakers on Wednesday. He finished with 46 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists and 7 blocks.

He had to sit out his first two seasons due to injury, and had to miss most of last season due to a knee injury. This season he is healthy, and torturing every big man he faces. There’s not much he can’t do. There is absolutely no reason a 7-footer should be able to euro-step like James Harden. Even though he only shoots 22 percent from 3, you still have to respect it because he is more than capable of knocking it down.

Even after Kyle Kuzma tried to dunk on him he still wasn’t phased. Believe it or not the Lakers are third in the NBA in defensive efficiency, and Embiid was playing like it was a 5-on-0 walkthrough. What may be lost in his last two performances is the minutes he’s playing. Coming into Wednesday’s game it was unsure if he would play the same amount of minutes he did against the Clippers.

If the Sixers are going to make the playoffs they will need Emiid to not only be healthy, but continue to play at a high level. Right now there’s no stopping him.

Could you imagine if Ben Simmons had a jump shot?: Right now Ben Simmons is the odds on favorite to win Rookie of the Year. He finished Wednesday’s game with another double-double, and was completely in sync with Joel Embiid all night. Simmons finished a rebound shy of another triple-double.

Simmons is already one of the best passers in the NBA, and he makes it look completely effortless. As exceptional of a player as Simmons it’s somewhat amazing that he puts up these ridiculous numbers without a jump shot.

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He shoots 50 percent from the floor, and no one is complaining about that. He’s only taken seven 3s on the season, and he’s missed all of them. With only seven 3s taken that means 96 percent of the shots he’s taken this season are two pointers; and it’s not like he takes a lot of mid-range jumpers either. A whopping 41 percent of his shots come zero to three feet away from the basket, and he shoots 70 percent on those shots.

When he gets out to 10-to-15 feet away his percentage drops all the way down to 29 percent. If Simmons ever gets a consistent mid-range jump shot he is going to be impossible to stop.