Rivers Issues High Praise to Joel Embiid After Dominating Jazz

Joel Embiid's dominance against the Jazz was unlike anything Doc Rivers has ever seen.

Being around the NBA since the early 80s, Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers has seen a lot of impressive performances as a player and a coach. 

On Sunday night, Rivers witnessed a performance unlike any other he's ever seen.

“I’ve seen guys score a lot of points,” said the Sixers’ head coach following a victory over the Utah Jazz. “I haven’t seen a guy score a lot of points, rebounds, and then the blocked shots.”

Sixers center Joel Embiid was on triple-double watch in the third quarter of Sunday’s matchup against the Jazz, as the big man had 33 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists going into the fourth quarter.  

That stat line would be impressive on any given night for most players, but Embiid had another 11 minutes to build on that in the fourth quarter.

Considering the Jazz controlled the game for most of the night, Embiid realized he had to step up and dominate further on both sides of the ball. The big man proceeded to put together the best fourth-quarter performance he’s ever put on display.

Embiid went 7-8 from the field and knocked down 12 of his 15 free throw attempts. Offensively, he produced all but one of Philadelphia’s 27 fourth-quarter points. Defensively, he collected two of his three total rebounds in the fourth quarter and blocked five shots. 

After his dominant fourth-quarter showing, Embiid finished the night with a career-high of 59 points. While he didn’t complete the triple-double, he was mighty close as he collected 11 rebounds while producing eight assists and blocking seven shots. 

“That was impressive,” Rivers continued. “He was getting everything. I’ve never seen a more dominating performance when you combine defense and offensive in the fourth quarter.”

Embiid’s contributions allowed the Sixers to make it out of Sunday’s game with a 105-98 win. Sunday’s victory marks the Sixers’ seventh victory in 14 games. While they still have a lot of work to do moving forward, Rivers and the Sixers feel especially encouraged about Embiid’s last two showings as he dominated the weekend slate with impressive performances against the Atlanta Hawks and the Jazz. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.