Joel Embiid leads Philadelphia 76ers to comeback victory over Oklahoma City Thunder in his return

Joel Embiid returned from a 29-game absence and led the Philadelphia 76ers to a 109-105 come from behind win over the Oklahoma City Thunder at Wells Fargo Center.

The reigning MVP has been sidelined since late January due to a left meniscus injury, but he returned tonight and didn’t skip a beat. Despite not having his co-star in Tyrese Maxey, the big man dominated and even got the game-winning steal to take down the top seed in the Western Conference.

The 7-time All-Star finished with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals in 29 minutes for the 76ers. Kelly Oubre Jr. scored a game-high 25 points while Tobias Harris hit 5 triples and ended with 18 points. Cameron Payne recorded 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists while Paul Reed provided 12 points and 9 boards off the bench.

The Thunder were without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams in this one, so Chet Holmgren stepped his game up as he finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 3 makes from downtown. Ku Dort recorded 15 points, 8 boards, 2 steals, and 2 blocks while Aaron Wiggins had 15 points with 3 steals. Isaiah Joe hit 4 threes off the bench and ended with 14 points.

Philadelphia improves to 41-35 with this win and sit 2 games away behind the Pacers for the 6th seed. The 76ers would like to jump up in the standings to avoid the play-in but it might be too late with just 6 games remaining in the regular season.

However, they are ecstatic that their superstar Joel Embiid has returned and they will make sure that he doesn’t overwork himself to risk re-injury. The presence of the dominant center will cause havoc in the Eastern Conference playoffs as they could upset any of the higher seeds. This team is currently on a 2-game winning streak and will look to keep this up on Thursday against the Miami Heat.

OKC drops to 52-23 and have a chance to drop to the 2nd seed if Minnesota wins their game tonight. This was a tough loss without their 2 best players but they were able to remain competitive till the final seconds.

The Thunder would ideally like to finish as the top seed but they are just happy to have clinched a playoff spot for the first time since the bubble and they will look to make some noise in the postseason. This team is 7-3 over their last 10 games and will look to bounce back tomorrow against the Boston Celtics.