Joel Embiid Felt Love From Sixers Fans at Wizards' Home Game 3
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After opening the first round of the playoffs with two-straight home games at the Wells Fargo Center in Philly, the Sixers finally hit the road this week for their first pair of away games in the postseason since last year's bubble.
Despite playing in an arena that isn't the Sixers' home, a few players felt somewhat at home in the Capital One Arena as 76ers fans were scattered everywhere throughout the arena cheering loud for Eastern Conference's top team.
Leading up to Saturday's Game 3, Sixers center Joel Embiid mentioned he was excited to play the Wizards on the road because he embraced the hostile environment and felt that he could use the idea of fans cheering against him as motivation.
"I love playing on the road," Embiid said following Game 2 on Wednesday night. "Because people boo you and talk trash. For me personally, it makes me play even better. Just because I want to shut them up,"
But on Saturday night, Embiid didn't have the full experience of having an entire crowd cheering against him because Sixers fans traveled in flocks to D.C., and the big man felt the home away from home advantage in Game 3.
“It felt like this was a Philly crowd," Embiid explained after the game. "It felt like we had more fans. In the past, it’s always been that way. Our fans have always shown up and have been louder on the road — especially here in D.C. —tonight, it felt the same.”
Joel Embiid leaving the court. Heard MVP chants for him all night.... on the road #Sixers pic.twitter.com/33sEe4OkZs
— Justin Grasso (@JGrasso_) May 30, 2021
While Embiid did hear his fair share of boos on Saturday night, he also heard many MVP chants and cheers as the Sixers rallied to defeat Washington for the third-straight game. After the dominant 132-103 victory, the Sixers took a 3-0 lead in the series and are now one win away from putting the Wizards away for good and moving on.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.