Surviving both a Joel Embiid injury scare and a fourth-quarter push by the Orlando Magic, the Philadelphia 76ers took a significant step toward escaping the Eastern Conference play-in picture with a 125-113 victory over the Magic at the Wells Fargo Center on Friday night.
Philadelphia (46-35) has now notched seven consecutive wins and moved into a tie with the Magic—now losers of three straight—for sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings with just Sunday’s games remaining.
However, a late second-quarter scare shifted the focus when Embiid—playing in his fifth game since returning from a left meniscus procedure last month—came up limping and grabbing at his left knee after making a basket.
Despite immediately heading to the locker room, Embiid returned for the start of the second half and hit a 3-pointer, ultimately finishing with 32 points, 13 rebounds, and 7 assists in 32 minutes.
Joel Embiid (Via NBA/Twitter)
He was supported by his co-star, Tyrese Maxey, who contributed 28 points, including crucial baskets in the final five minutes after Orlando closed the gap to six points, giving the 76ers the breathing room needed to secure the win.
Friday’s game was one of several across both conferences with massive implications for the playoff picture, as Friday’s play opened with only three seeds decided and just two days of regular-season basketball remaining.
The game with the biggest immediate impact on Friday’s outcome was in Cleveland, where the Cavaliers got 33 points from Donovan Mitchell and 29 points and 13 rebounds from Jarrett Allen to beat the Indiana Pacers, giving themselves a shot at moving as high as the No. 2 seed with another win Sunday against Charlotte.
Meanwhile, in New York, the Knicks moved closer to guaranteeing at least the third seed in the East with a 111-107 victory over their crosstown rivals, the Brooklyn Nets.
Now, New York just needs a win over Chicago on Sunday at Madison Square Garden to lock in at least the 3-seed.
Orlando Magic Team (Via NBA/Twitter)
Here’s where things stand across the Eastern Conference heading into Sunday’s final day of regular-season action:
– Boston is locked into the top seed.
– Milwaukee will be the second seed if it beats Orlando; New York will be if it beats Chicago and Orlando beats Milwaukee; Cleveland will be if it beats Charlotte and both New York and Milwaukee lose.
– New York will be the third seed if the Bucks and Knicks both win. Milwaukee will be the third seed if the Knicks win and the Bucks and Cavaliers lose. Cleveland will be the third seed if the Cavaliers win and the Knicks win and Bucks lose.
– Cleveland will be the fourth seed if it loses or the Cavaliers, Bucks, and Knicks all win. Milwaukee will be fourth if New York and Cleveland win and the Bucks lose. New York will be fourth if the Knicks and Bucks lose and the Cavaliers win.
– Orlando will finish fifth if it wins against Milwaukee, by virtue of winning the Southeast Division. Indiana will finish fifth if it wins against Atlanta and Orlando loses. Philadelphia will finish fifth if it wins and Indiana and Orlando both lose.
– Indiana will finish sixth if it wins and Orlando wins. Philadelphia will finish sixth if it wins and either Indiana or Orlando loses.
– Philadelphia will finish seventh if it wins and both Orlando and Indiana win. Miami will finish seventh if the Heat win against the Toronto Raptors, the 76ers and Pacers win, and the Magic lose.
– Miami will finish eighth if it loses or if the Heat, Magic, 76ers, and Pacers all win.
– Chicago is locked into finishing ninth, and Atlanta is locked into finishing 10th.
