The Miami Heat beat the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night, 106-89. Philadelphia blew an 18-point lead in the second quarter as they lost their fourth straight game and dropped to 2-11 on the season, which means the Sixers are tied with the Washington Wizards for the worst record in the NBA. It was the kind of result that led to an hour-long team meeting in the locker room after the game.
When the press was finally let into the locker room many gathered around Joel Embiid who had just played his second game of the season and put up just 11 points and eight rebounds in the loss. Embiid was asked about Jimmy Butler, who finished with 30 points on just 12 field goal attempts, and the Sixers’ star center had some pretty high praise for his former teammate.
I talked to Joel Embiid about Jimmy Butler tonight:
I talked to Joel Embiid about Jimmy Butler tonight:
“One of the best players in the league. Probably top five. Probably the best actually.” pic.twitter.com/zxYFKh45kJ
— Brady Hawk (@BradyHawk305) November 19, 2024
“Jimmy’s Jimmy,” said Embiid. “He does everything. Scoring, passing the ball. Commanding while being on the floor. Both sides of the floor. One of the best players in the league. Probably top five. Probably the best actually. Best player in the league. He’s hard. He’s hard to guard. You know, it takes the whole team.”
When Embiid speaks about Butler, it’s hard not to imagine he wishes the Sixers never lost him. In Butler’s one season with Philadelphia, the team came within a Kawhi Leonard buzzer-beater of the Eastern Conference Finals. Since then they haven’t come any closer to postseason success while the Butler and the Heat have gone to three Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals.
It’s unlikely Butler could solve all the Sixers’ issues, especially because he’s also a big proponent of load management during the regular season, but it certainly couldn’t get any worse than it is right now. Still, the Sixers had the perfect pairing for Embiid and let him go five years ago. Who wouldn’t want the best player in the league on their team?
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