With Joel Embiid and Paul George both back on the floor, the Sixers beat the Bulls in very convincing style Wednesday night.
They earned a 157-137 win at Xfinity Mobile Arena to improve to 40-33 on the season. Chicago fell to 29-43.
Embiid was dominant with 35 points on 12-for-17 shooting, seven assists and six rebounds.
George tallied 28 points on 11-for-22 shooting, six rebounds, four assists and four steals.
VJ Edgecombe had 22 points, six assists and six boards.
Embiid had missed the Sixers’ last 13 games with a right oblique strain. George had been suspended 25 games for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy.
The Sixers remained without Tyrese Maxey (right pinky finger injury), Kelly Oubre Jr. (left elbow sprain) and Johni Broome (right knee surgery recovery). Oubre has been cleared for on-court activity and participated in the Sixers’ shootaround Wednesday morning, a team official said.
The Sixers will visit the Hornets on Saturday night. Here are observations on their blowout win over the Bulls:
Embiid wastes no time lighting up Bulls
The Sixers didn’t make any surprising changes to their starting lineup. Embiid and George slotted in and shared the floor with Edgecombe, Quentin Grimes and Dominick Barlow.
The night’s first hoop came when George tossed a pass ahead to Edgecombe, who glided in and converted an acrobatic layup. Embiid swished a three-pointer on the Sixers’ next possession. The seven-time All-Star big man was immediately in the zone as a jump shooter and isolation scorer. He attacked Nick Richards and poured in points with apparent ease.
Embiid started 5 for 5 from the floor and scored 12 of the Sixers’ first 14 points. When he’s in a groove and the opposition doesn’t send hard double teams, such stretches are still well within Embiid’s ability.
Edgecombe was also highly efficient in the first quarter. The rookie was the only Sixer to play the entire quarter and posted 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting.
George works through rust
George registered an early defensive highlight when he swiped a backcourt steal.
He looked much more rusty on offense. After missing two long-range jumpers in the first quarter, George got his first basket when he drove along the baseline and made a layup on the first play of the second. George’s only other bucket in the first half was a corner three with eight seconds left in the second quarter.
The Sixers still maintained a big advantage, in part because the Bulls began 3 for 21 beyond the arc.
Embiid blocked former teammate Guerschon Yabusele inside late in the second quarter, which led to a Grimes lay-in that put the Sixers up 62-39. The Sixers led by as many as 24 points in the second.
Edgecombe extends 20-plus run
Edgecombe reached a fourth consecutive game with at least 20 points when he sunk his fourth three-pointer early in the third quarter.
Following his 35-point night Monday on 28 field goal attempts in the Sixers’ loss to the Thunder, Edgecombe got his 22 points vs. Chicago on just nine field goal attempts. Of course, his jump shots tend to be more open when he has star talent around him.
George’s jumpers started to drop in the third quarter and the Sixers further expanded their lead. They went up 101-71 when George knocked down a fadeaway from the post.
There was obviously no need for Embiid to play in the fourth quarter. George added another three-ball to open the scoring for the Sixers in the fourth, which kickstarted a hot spurt.
George made two smooth mid-range jumpers, then drained a three that stretched the Sixers’ lead to 47 points and prompted a Bulls timeout. Even with the game long since decided, the moment was clearly meaningful for George, who smiled and danced with his teammates. For almost two months, he hadn’t been on the floor or even the sideline.
The Sixers’ bench also erupted in celebration when Kyle Lowry, who turned 40 years old Wednesday, hit a three with 25.2 seconds left.