Joel Embiid Shows True Philadelphia Grit to Eliminate the Celtics Despite a 3-1 Series Lead

Here is a news flash for everyone: when Joel Embiid is on the basketball court, he changes everything. The Boston Celtics and their fans just learned this the hard way. After Game 6, he reflected on his past history against the Boston Celtics.

“I’ve been playing these guys for so long. I’m tired of losing to them,” Embiid said. “So we have a chance to accomplish something special. I mean, they’re a great team and you look at everything they have, that’s a super team. So, we’ve just got to go and go with the mindset we’ve had for the last three games.”

There is a certain responsibility of being a superstar athlete in Philadelphia. Every star athlete who calls Philly home understands this. If you want to be embraced by Philadelphia sports fans, it takes more than just being elite in your sport. You have to be tough and, above all, have grit. While Embiid has taken fire for his durability, Saturday night, his grit was on full display. Not only did he completely take over this game, but he played through the very adversity that has defined his legacy, and he did so in a playoff Game 7, a game he had never won until this series.

Embiid dominated the game until the fourth quarter. When his offense went cold, he let his defense do the heavy lifting, especially in the last 90 seconds of the game. During this time with the Sixers holding onto a two-point lead, the scariest moment of the playoffs happened. Jaylen Brown drove to the paint with Tyrese Maxey defending him, stopped, and used his forearm to get some distance from Maxey. This knocked an off-balance Maxey backwards into Embiid’s left knee and made everyone on the standing Sixers bench visibly nervous.

Embiid got up, walking gingerly. With the weight of the season on his shoulders, he stayed on the floor to close out the victory. There is absolutely nothing that’s more nightmare fuel for the 76ers than seeing Joel Embiid hobbling up the court, but this just had a different vibe. He played through the pain, and he showed the exact grit that defines not just the 76ers but the city of Philadelphia. The 76ers proved exactly how tough they are by overcoming a 3-1 deficit to eliminate the Celtics.

“What changed in the series was Joel Embiid came back,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said after Game 7. “They’re a completely different team and that’s what changed in the series.”

The Sixers are only the 14th team in NBA history to accomplish that massive comeback. The 76ers are also the first No. 7 seed in the East to defeat a No. 2 seed since the first round expanded to best-of-seven in 2003. They won Game 7 to secure their first playoff series win over Boston since 1982. This team refused to quit when everyone counted them out. It helps even more if the opposition publicly minimizes a star player’s ability, which Payton Pritchard did before Embiid came back. Embiid took that personally and had to thank him in his post-game press conference.

“It does also help when I saw number 11 on the team,” Embiid said on Saturday. “Before I came back, he said he didn’t care if I was playing or not and they hadn’t even adjusted or had some sort of game plan around me. So I think it also helps when the other team doesn’t worry about you and have some sort of game plan or being prepared for you. So he helps you have a better game. So I thank you know number 11 for that.”

Now the absolute highest priority is to bubble wrap Embiid until Game 1 tips off Monday night and keep his knee completely healthy. The medical staff has to work around the clock to get him ready for the next round. The Sixers need him at full strength to keep this postseason run alive.

Anyone who wrote the Sixers off after Game 4 should have their eyes wide open. The big man delivered exactly what he promised when the Celtics pushed them to the brink. You can doubt his health or question the roster, but you cannot question his heart after tonight. The 76ers survived the Celtics, and they finally got their revenge.

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