{"id":1928511,"date":"2026-05-11T02:20:47","date_gmt":"2026-05-10T23:20:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1928511"},"modified":"2026-05-11T02:20:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-10T23:20:47","slug":"joel-embiid-76ers-must-get-better-from-top-to-bottom-after-being-swept-by-knicks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1928511","title":{"rendered":"Joel Embiid: 76ers must get better \u2018from top to bottom\u2019 after being swept by Knicks"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

PHILADELPHIA \u2014 On Sunday afternoon, the Philadelphia 76ers lost an Eastern Conference semifinal Game 4, 144-114, to the New York Knicks. The defeat ended an up-and-down season for Philly, and it ended a series in a sweep, 4-0.<\/p>\n

As players filed out of Xfinity Mobile Arena on Sunday night, Sixers star center Joel Embiid left one final message for the offseason.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cSo, we just gotta get better, from top to bottom,\u201d Embiid said. \u201cOwnership, players, coaches, everybody just has to get better.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

The sentiment matches what we saw on the floor during the series. The Knicks were the better team, and there wasn\u2019t anything Philadelphia could do about it. Embiid still took some personal responsibility.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cFrankly, they were just better than us. So, we have to look at each other, and that starts with me,\u201d Embiid said Sunday. \u201cI wasn\u2019t around for much of the season for a lot of things. So, moving forward, I have an understanding of what it takes to make sure that I get to play. I think we will be better next year. But, for now, I\u2019m disappointed we didn\u2019t get a chance for a championship. So, everyone has to look at themselves, starting with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

{“endpoint”:”https:\/\/api-prd-nyt.theathletic.com\/graphql”}<\/p>\n

Off the floor, the Knicks\u2019 fanbase took over Philadelphia\u2019s home floor in Games 3 and 4, and particularly in Game 4. Despite Philadelphia winning 45 games this season, despite the Sixers improving dramatically on last season, and despite Philly winning a first-round playoff series against the Boston Celtics, the loss to New York will still sting, as Philadelphia heads into the summer.<\/p>\n

New York sent a message to its rival that it isn\u2019t close to winning, or competing for an NBA championship.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt absolutely sucks, if I\u2019m being honest. It just sucks,\u201d Philly guard Tyrese Maxey said, when asked about New York fans filling Xfinity Mobile Arena.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s really all I can say about it, man. It\u2019s hard. It\u2019s definitely difficult. It\u2019s only one way to put a stop to it and it\u2019s, we have to go out there and win these games. Just being completely honest, we were better when we played them in the Garden this entire season. I know we lost Game 2 and 1, but Game 2 was better. The regular season was better. I was telling them, it felt louder here for them than it did in the Garden. We got to put a stop to it as a team. Winning these games, that\u2019s gonna make our fans louder than theirs or whatever. I don\u2019t know how to keep them out. I don\u2019t know the logistics of it, but it does suck. I can\u2019t even lie. It definitely does suck.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Philadelphia did its exit interviews after the game, which means the Sixers likely won\u2019t have a media availability involving a roster player until at least NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. Through every interview with every player, the prevailing opinion was a clear one: The 76ers took strides and improved from last season. But they have a way to go.<\/p>\n

There are major decisions to be made, perhaps some being made over the coming days. Among players, Quentin Grimes and Kelly Oubre Jr. will be unrestricted free agents. So, with that, the 76ers will have to figure out how to improve the roster, and get it to where the Knicks are. Doing so won\u2019t be easy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PHILADELPHIA \u2014 On Sunday afternoon, the Philadelphia 76ers lost an Eastern Conference semifinal Game 4, 144-114, to the New York Knicks. The defeat ended an up-and-down season for Philly, and it ended a series in a sweep, 4-0. As players filed out of Xfinity Mobile Arena on Sunday night, Sixers star center Joel Embiid left […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,241],"class_list":["post-1928511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nytimes-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1928511"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928511\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1928511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1928511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1928511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}