2:37 p.m. ET
Tim Bontemps ESPN
TORONTO — Three years ago, Kawhi Leonard ended the Philadelphia 76ers’ season with a last-second shot at Scotiabank Arena. Joel Embiid returned the favor on Wednesday evening.
A finalist for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player Award for the second year in a row, Embiid had an MVP moment to end Game 3 of this first round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors by scoring 0.8 seconds from time in the Extension hit a turnaround 3-pointer to give Philadelphia a 104-101 win and a 3-0 lead in the series.
“Great playcall,” Embiid said. “Tobias [Harris] Set an amazing screen. Danni [Green] had a great pass.
“So I really just had to finish it, and I’m glad I did.”
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According to ESPN Stats & Information, it was the first time in Embiid’s career that he had a last-second shot in the fourth quarter or overtime to tie or win after missing his first 14 tries.
And he apparently did it while struggling with pain in his shooting hand. Embiid arrived at his press conference almost two hours after the end of the game after a lengthy treatment session. He wore a splint on his right hand and what appeared to be tape on his right thumb underneath.
“I don’t know exactly what happened,” Embiid said. “But I’ve just started to feel pain and I think I may have twisted it. So we’ll see what’s up [Thursday].”
Whatever it was, it didn’t stop Embiid from beating the Raptors into submission again. After a terrible first half in which he scored five points and committed four turnovers, Embiid returned to the dominant force that terrorized the Raptors during the first two games of the series in Philadelphia.
“I didn’t catch him, but I got on him at halftime,” said 76ers coach Doc Rivers. “Like, ‘You get the ball in your points.’
“You know, I think he keeps looking for doubles teams instead of being aggressive. And I think that might have been a breakthrough for him in the third quarter. He didn’t care if they came or not. He went to be aggressive and I liked that.”
The only thing anyone could focus on after that was Embiid’s ridiculous shot – one he took from almost the same spot he tried to land a game-winning shot at the end of the rule, only for it to come out just short.
When he was given a second chance in this place, he was sure not to make the same mistake.
“I was such a hype,” said Harris, who lined up the screen that opened Embiid to the winner. “I mean just the heat of the moment in the game. So was the type of shot. Very fast, turnaround, money.
“I mean, we always say he shoots some of those 3s in the game. They’re not what many basketball players consider the best shots, but they always go in. So let’s go, for him this is a high percentage shot, really. Especially on this wing? I mean we got the ball to our best player and someone making plays, making shots. I think just the kind of game he had. From the start, from the first half to the second half… it’s just a perfect, perfect ending to this type of game, really.”
Perhaps the wildest part of it all was that Embiid had almost no chance of even getting the shot off. After OG Anunoby shared a pair of free throws to level the game with 26.2 seconds left, Philadelphia gave Embiid the ball to try to win the game – just like the 76ers had done at the end of regular time. But when Precious Achiuwa – who missed two free throws that would have put Toronto ahead late in the fourth quarter – slapped the ball away from Embiid, it was only Rivers who sprinted all the way near Toronto’s bench to call a time-out, which prevented a violation of the shot clock.
Instead, Embiid got the opportunity to KO the Raptors, who now find themselves in a hole no NBA team has come back from: 0-3 in a best-of-seven series.
“It’s tough,” said Raptors coach Nick Nurse. “I have to think about it but it’s a heavy loss as I can remember for my time here. Of course, when we pull that thing out, we got ourselves a series, and instead they got themselves a really, really deep hole to dig.”
It was one that Toronto will surely look back on with regret. The Raptors forced Philadelphia to 24 turnovers (which turned into 27 Raptors points). They got another big performance from Anunoby (26 points) as well as 24 from Gary Trent Jr., who finally looked like himself after dealing with a non-COVID-19 illness in the first two games of the series.
The Raptors made 12 more shots than the 76ers and mostly kept Philadelphia off the foul line. But after dominating the first half, Toronto led by just 10 points thanks to strong play from 76ers guard James Harden, who finished with 19 points, six rebounds and 10 assists in 38 minutes before fouling late in regulation.
That allowed Philadelphia to hang around until Embiid took over in the third quarter when he bested Toronto almost alone, with the Raptors scoring 19 and Embiid fielding 18 from Philly’s 28.
However, that was just a prelude to his late-game exploits.
“I mean, I knew the ball was going to him,” Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey said. “And when he caught it… I don’t know, man. I have nothing to say. That was crazy man. Joel… Joel is Joel.”
Wednesday’s contest was the first playoff game at Scotiabank Arena since Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals, the penultimate game of that series in which Toronto won its lone championship. A few weeks earlier, Leonard’s shot had heartbreakingly sent Philadelphia home in the second round of this postseason.
Harris said he and Embiid, as the two key holdovers of that team from 2019, spoke about the importance of beating Toronto and winning in that building.
But Embiid admitted it felt good to beat the Raptors and land his first game-winning shot, but said his focus isn’t on achieving any level of revenge. Instead, it’s about what he hasn’t done in this series or in any of his other three career trips to the playoffs: make it through the second round.
“No. It’s just the first round,” he said when asked if there was any added meaning to this series. “You know, once I’m through the second round? Yes, I can start to feel this way. of course, win NBA Finals and the whole thing.
“I didn’t really think about what happened three years ago. Obviously the shot makes me feel good about what happened. But throughout this whole series, I haven’t really thought about, you know, coming here and trying to get revenge. I think I’m more focused on trying to win the whole thing, one game at a time, and trying to do whatever it takes to get us there.”
The next step, Embiid said, is winning Game 4 on Saturday. And as he left the court, he chatted up Canadian rapper Drake, who sat in his seat at court throughout the game, chirping Embiid and the 76ers.
It was a good-natured conversation, but Embiid made no secret of his desire to end that series on Saturday afternoon.
“Obviously he’s always talking,” Embiid said. “But obviously I had to let him know, you know, obviously we’re trying to get Game 4 and do the sweep.”