PHILADELPHIA — Monday night’s loss delayed making things official.
As one of the league’s top teams for much of the season, the 76ers expect to do much more than reach the playoffs. They’re one of the contenders for the NBA title.
But things come in steps, and the Sixers missed out on taking the first one at the Wells Fargo Center.
The Chicago Bulls prevailed 109-105 in double overtime to delay the Sixers’ sixth consecutive postseason appearance. This loss came after the Sixers (48-23) honored members of their 1982-83 team for the 40th anniversary of their NBA title.
A victory would have given them more to celebrate.
But after honoring Julius ‘Dr.J’ Erving, Bobby Jones, Mo Cheeks and Co., the Sixers had their league-best eight-game winning streak snapped. The loss also dropped them to third place in Eastern Conference standings, ½ game behind second-place Boston Celtics with 11 games remaining.
In the process, Joel Embiid lost to the Bulls (34-37) for the first time in 13 games.
The MVP candidate finished with game highs of 37 points and 16 rebounds and three blocks before fouling out with 3 minutes, 54 seconds left in double-overtime. Eighteen of his points came in the third quarter.
The Sixers also got a solid performance from De’Anthony Melton. The reserve guard finished with 19 points while making 5 of 11 three-pointers.
Tyrese Maxey had 22 points. James Harden had five points, 12 assists and seven rebounds, but struggled through 2 of 12 shooting. The Sixers were also doomed by 21 turnovers.
Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 26 points, while DeMar DeRozan added 25. Nic Vucevic had 21 points, 12 rebounds and four steals.
Down to the wire
The game went into double-overtime after DeRozan misfired on a three-pointer before the overtime buzzer.
The Bulls had a 107-105 lead after LaVine hit a pair of foul shots with a 51.4 seconds left in double-overtime. The Sixers had chances to knot the score and take a lead. Harden had a layup attempt blocked by Chester native Derrick Jones Jr. with 14 seconds left. Tobias Harris grabbed the rebound, but missed a 13-foot jumper.
Jones then grabbed the rebound and passed to Coby White, who converted a pair of foul shots after being fouled by Harris.
Embiid continues to dominate
Embiid had another MVP-caliber performance, making 11 of 22 shots and 15 of 17 free throws. This was his seventh consecutive game with multiple blocks.
The 7-foot-2, 280-pounder’s basketball IQ, combined with an understanding of angles and his ability to get fouled stands out the most to Bulls coach Billy Donovan.
“I think maybe Giannis is the guy in the league that gets to the free-throw line more than [Embiid] does,” Donovan said. Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has attempted a league-best 12.63 foul shots compared Embiid’s 11.82 as of Sunday.
Embiid “shoots threes, plays in the midrange, can play his back to the basket,” Donovan said, “but also a good awareness of how to get others involved and pass the basketball.”
“I also think he probably doesn’t get enough credit in terms of his defense. … He can really protect the rim in pick-and-roll. He can keep people in front of him and is a hard guy to finish over.”
Embiid had nine points on 3-for-5 shooting in the first quarter. He also made 3 of 4 foul shots. However, the seventh-year veteran scored just two points in the second quarter while making a pair of foul shots. He missed both of his shot attempts. Embiid also had a layup wiped out due to being called for an offensive foul late in the half.
Embiid followed that poor second quarter up by taking over the third quarter.
No Tucker
Danuel House Jr. got his second consecutive start of the season with P.J. Tucker missing consecutive games after spraining his left ankle Friday against the Charlotte Hornets. House finished with four points, three rebounds., three assists and a steal.
Tucker being unavailable didn’t come as a surprise. The power forward didn’t participate on Monday morning’s shootaround. And Erving, who attended the Sixers’ shootaround, said he didn’t think Tucker would play.
Turnover woes
This was the second time in four games that the Sixers had to overcome an abundance of turnovers. And just like when they committed 20 against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday, several of Monday’s turnovers were unforced. At times, the Sixers were trying to be too fancy. They also had errant passes and were just careless with the ball.
Up next
The Sixers travel to Chicago on Tuesday for a rematch with the Bulls Wednesday night at the United Center. It will mark the teams’ fourth and final series meeting.