Fresh off an upset of the Boston Celtics in round one in Game 7 on Saturday night, Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid immediately turned his attention to the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
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The 76ers were down 3-1 to the Celtics in the series before winning three consecutive games, including a 109-100 victory in Game 7 in front of a crowd of 19,156 at TD Garden.
Embiid, who had emergency appendectomy surgery on April 9, made his first appearance in the series in Game 4. He played the hero for Philadelphia on Saturday, scoring a game-high 34 points to go along with 12 rebounds and six assists.
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After beating the Celtics on Saturday, the 76ers will play another rival in a series beginning on Monday night. Philadelphia will travel to play the New York Knicks for Game 1.
During his postgame news conference, Embiid had a message for the 76ers fan base, pleading with them not to sell tickets to Knicks fans before Game 3 on Friday night.
“I just have a message for our fans,” Embiid said, via ESPN. “Last time we played the Knicks, it felt like [Philadelphia] was Madison Square Garden East. We’re going to need the support.
“Don’t sell your tickets. This is bigger than you. We need you guys.”
Embiid voiced his understandable frustration with 76ers fans during the first round in 2024, when Knicks fans flooded Wells Fargo Arena and made life a little more difficult for the home team. New York won the series in six games.
Embiid wants the 76ers crowd to be loud in the semifinals.
“Knicks fans travel — they buy tickets,” Embiid said. “There’s going to be people who will sell the tickets because they need the money. Don’t do it, we need you guys. We need the support, and we need them to be extremely loud. If you need money, I’ve got you.”
The stakes will be higher for the 76ers in the semifinals than they were in 2024. Philadelphia has a legitimate chance of making the NBA Finals if they can pull off another upset against the Knicks.
Embiid is playing at an extremely high level coming off his surgery. It would be a shame if 76ers fans missed a chance to witness his play in person because they sold tickets to Knicks fans trying to make Wells Fargo Arena a hostile environment for Embiid and his teammates.
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