While the Toronto Raptors have managed to do as good a job as any team against Joel Embiid over the years, the Philadelphia 76ers big man insists he knows what to expect heading into their playoff series.
"The way they defend me has never changed. They just play recklessly. Sending three guys on me as soon as the ball is in the air," Embiid told reporters in Philadelphia on Thursday.
"That made me better, honestly, over the years, just playing against them and watching them. They definitely made me a better playmaker ... But there's still a lot of ways I can attack them. It doesn't have to be iso. I can just get position on them. Use my size and my weight to try to take advantage. I think I know what I have to do. I just have to execute."
Much has been made of the Raptors' success in limiting Embiid, the NBA's leading scorer this season.
Over the past three seasons, Embiid has averaged 28.1 points a game on 50.3 per cent shooting overall against the rest of the NBA, but versus the Raptors it’s just 19.3 points a game on 36.2 per cent shooting.
The Sixers went 1-3 against the Raptors this season – including 1-2 in the games Embiid was active for – and are 4-7 against Toronto since Kawhi Leonard’s shot dropped to end a seven-game playoff series in 2019.
"I'm not going into a series hoping to average 40. They're going to get the ball out of my hands. It's all about me really not getting frustrated and keep trusting my teammates over and over," Embiid said.
The best-of-seven series opens Saturday in Philadelphia.
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