Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons-less Philadelphia 76ers demolish Chicago Bulls

Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid have led the Philadelphia 76ers to the top of the NBA Eastern Conference but the team has shown it’s not a two man operation.

No Embiid and Simmons — no worries.

Questions over the Philadelphia 76ers depth have somewhat been answered as the supporting cast had a day out against the Chicago Bulls.

The Eastern Conference leaders are just half a game ahead of the stacked Brooklyn Nets and were missing Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid for the first game back after the All-Star break.

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Simmons and Embiid were forced to miss the All-Star game after the Aussie had his hair cut by a barber who tested positive to COVID-19.

But despite missing possible MVP Embiid and defensive player of the year contender Simmons, the 76ers have claimed a thumping win on return from the break.

Sure, they were playing the East’s 11th placed Bulls but Tobias Harris has led the side to a 127-105 thrashing.

With just two wins between fourth and 11th in the Eastern Conference, the Bulls should have smelled blood in the water with the Sixers’ All-Stars out of the match.

But Harris’ 24 points, 18 points and 12 rebounds for Dwight Howard and five other players hitting double figures pushed the Sixers over the top.

Tobias Harris led the way for Philadelphia.

Almost 40 years since the last Philadelphia title in 1982-83 and having gone through the lean years of “Trust The Process”, the Sixers with Embiid and Simmons at the helm have been heavily criticised for not being able to go to the next level in the playoffs.

Deep shooting has always been the side’s achilles heel and while they only hit 10 from 33 from deep, the Sixers made up for it with 43 from 70 from two-point range, while the Bulls were more accurate from range but took 20 less shots overall.

There were plenty of people impressed by the performance with coach Doc Rivers leading the praise.

“Listening to all the other guys, ‘Man, you guys are gonna be in trouble your first two’,” Rivers said. “Well, we were not and we played great. I thought our defence was good. We didn’t turn the ball over, which I thought was huge, and you usually do when you have your two best offensive guys out. We just did a lot of things good and I thought we just played under control throughout the game.”

Tony Bradley stepped into the daunting shoes of Embiid, scoring 14 points and three blocks, while Matisse Thybulle stepped in for Simmons with 13 points, four rebounds and an assist, but five steals.

Simmons and Embiid back make the Sixers a scary prospect.

NBA veteran Howard said the result showed how good the 76ers were as a team.

“I think it shows how deep we are as a team, how connected we are,” Howard said. “Missing our two best players, we still got the job done tonight. We believe in each other. We wish Ben and Joel was here, but I think they need some much-needed rest, and it’s good for them. I think we came out tonight with the right effort and energy.”

Last month, playing without Ben Simmons, Sixers needed every one of Joel Embiid's 50 points to beat Chicago at home. The bench looked hopeless.

Tonight, Sixers lead by 20 with three minutes left in Chicago without Embiid and Simmons. Great performance, critical win to bank.

— Rich Hofmann (@rich_hofmann) March 12, 2021

The Sixers have 70 points in the paint ... without Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons ... with seven minutes left to play!

— Darnell Mayberry (@DarnellMayberry) March 12, 2021

The NBA had two players test positive for COVID from 465 players tested since March 3, the league said Wednesday as its mid-season All-Star Game break concluded.

Anyone returning a positive test or identified as being in close contact to an infected person must quarantine until they are cleared under NBA health and safety protocols.

The contract tracing issue was what kept Embiid and Simmons from the All-Star game.

Should they continue to test negative for the virus, Embiid would return Friday when the 76ers visit Washington and Simmons would be back Sunday when the Sixers play host to San Antonio.

— with AFP