Joel Embiid has entered an extremely exclusive circle of NBA players with a 70-point gala. Last season’s MVP in the North American professional basketball league is only the ninth player to achieve such a feat in an NBA game.
In his Philadelphia 76ers’ 133:123 win against the San Antonio Spurs, the 29-year-old converted 24 of his 41 throws from the field and was successful 21 times in 23 attempts from the free throw line. The Cameroonian also managed a strong 18 rebounds.
Michael Jordan didn’t pass the entrance exam yet
Only Wilt Chamberlain, David Robinson, David Thompson, Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant, Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker and Damian Lillard had previously achieved at least 70 points in an NBA game. Chamberlain holds the record; on March 2, 1962, the legendary center scored exactly 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors (now Golden State Warriors) against the New York Knicks.
The closest to Chamberlain is Bryant (81 points on January 22, 2006). Michael Jordan, considered by many to be the greatest basketball player in history, narrowly missed inclusion in the elite circle (career best: 69 points).
His size gives Embiid a lot of advantages
“It feels good,” said Embiid, who had 24 points after the first quarter, praising his “extremely unselfish” teammates: “I was hot and they just gave me the ball and made sure I got in the best positions come.”
Sixers coach Nick Nurse emphasized that the combination of size and skill is what makes the 7-foot-1 Embiid so good. “He can score in so many ways,” Nurse said: “His sheer size gives him a lot of things around the basket and a lot of free throws.”
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But Karl-Anthony Towns also showed an outstanding performance on this match day, scoring 62 points in his Minnesota Timberwolves’ 125:128 defeat against the Charlotte Hornets – a little too few for the elite 70s circle.
2024-01-23 23:58:19
#Points #madness #NBA #Michael #Jordan
