It’s no secret that Philadelphia 76ers stars Joel Embiid and James Harden are terrific at getting to the foul line. The two of them are just so tough to stop that teams have to resort to fouling them and that allows them to get into a rhythm and get going on offense.
In Philadelphia’s 118-109 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road, Embiid shot 10-for-10 from the foul line and Harden 9-for-12. The Cavs just weren’t able to find a way to stop them, but they also believe that the two of them do a good job of manipulating the rules to get to the line. Embiid averaged 11.9 free throw attempts per game while Harden averaged 6.7 per game.
Cavs coach JB Bickerstaff, who worked with Harden while both were with the Houston Rockets, understands this the most when it comes to The Beard, specifically.
“Not taking anything away from those guys,” Bickerstaff told reporters. “They are phenomenal basketball players and they know how to play within the rules. I was with James for four years in Houston, and he’s a master at manipulating the rules, and Joel does the same. So you have to be extremely disciplined, but even then they find a way to create that contact and draw a foul.”
Cavs big man Evan Mobley looked as if he had drawn the sixth foul on Embiid in the fourth quarter when it looked like he had taken a charge from the Philadelphia star. However, the Sixers challenged the call and it was overturned leading to Embiid staying in the game.
“I feel like James Harden and Joel Embiid are both some great foul drawers,” Mobley stated. “We need to stay disciplined as possible and not foul them and have them go to the free-throw line over and over again.”
As far as the offensive foul play with Embiid is concerned, Mobley believed he was in a good spot to draw the call.
“I think I had a good position, he hit me, I fell back,” Mobley added. “There’s not much better I can do on that.”
Did Embiid and Harden get the benefit of the whistle a bit on Wednesday? Sure, but they both played so well in all facets of the game and that’s why the Sixers were able to come out on top.
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Story originally appeared on Sixers Wire