The 76ers were 3rd in the East before Joel Embiid got hurt. Now with that injury, the 76ers have fallen to the 7 seed and are fighting to get out of the play in. They have dealt with a multitude of injuries and even after acquiring Buddy Heild, the 76ers look worse than ever.
While the acquisition of Buddy Heild has been a great one as he has been averaging 14 points of 42-41 splits, the team has been sorely missing the presence of MVP Joel Embiid as they have been slipping in the standing losing to teams like the Memphis Grizzlies who only have one member of their starting lineup healthy.
Tyrese Maxey has still been great overall being one of the teams only bright spots as he is averaging 25 ppg on 45-38 shooting splits and 6 ast a game as well. However it has not been enough as key members of the team like Tobias Harris have been stinking the floor up with a game against the Grizzlies where he puts up 8 points or 2 points up against the Knicks.
Tobias hasn’t even been a good spot up shooter either as he is shooting 33% from 3 on the season. The team is built for Embiid and without him they look lost and without an identity.
Players like Kelly Oubre are now doing what they did last year and are shot chucking even though they are putting up 20 points. With Embiid, Kelly was averaging less but being more efficient and not shot chucking as much as he did with the Hornets.
Embiid has been saying that he is planning on returning to the court by the last week of the season according to Sports Illustrated. His return is much needed if the 76ers want to try and salvage the season before the playoffs.