Trying not to look too far down the road, NBA MVP Joel Embiid, who powered the 76ers to a Game 5 win over the Celtics that gave Philadelphia a 3-2 series lead, said after the victory that “we still got to get one more, and that’s all I’m thinking about.”
BOSTON — Throughout his career, Joel Embiid has never been in the position he found himself in Tuesday night: a win away from advancing past the Boston Celtics — and to the Eastern Conference finals — for the first time in his career.
But when asked how he felt about being in that position after scoring 33 points to go along with 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 blocked shots in Philadelphia’s 115-103 win over Boston in Game 5 of this Eastern Conference semifinal series here at TD Garden, the NBA’s newly minted Most Valuable Player wasn’t interested in discussing it.
“I honestly don’t care,” Embiid said. “We still got to get one more, and that’s all I’m thinking about right now. And then, obviously, you’re going home, so you’ll have a lot of energy in the crowd, and I imagine everybody plays better at home, too. I do play better at home.
“What we did tonight … it’s easier said than done, but we’ve got to do it again, and I’m excited for it.”
The 76ers made going on the road and winning for the second time in this series look — by playoff standards, relatively easy. Philadelphia shot 50% from the field, 40% from 3-point range, took care of the ball (before a series of mindless turnovers in the dying minutes of the game) and saw its stars — Embiid, James Harden (17 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists) control the game.
That, coupled with a 30-point explosion from Tyrese Maxey and limiting the Celtics to 39.8% shooting overall and 12-for-38 (31.6%) from 3-point range, was enough for the 76ers to grab control of the game in the first quarter and never relinquish the lead.
