76ers Bounce Back After Disappointing Performance vs. Celtics

The Philadelphia 76ers needed a win after Tuesday night's embarrassing performance against the Boston Celtics.

They got one Thursday, although it certainly wasn't pretty in the beginning.

Two nights after suffering a 123-101 defeat to Boston, Philadelphia found itself trailing Toronto by 17 points in the opening quarter. The defense was struggling, the offense couldn't find its rhythm, and the 76ers appeared headed toward another disappointing performance.

Then Philadelphia woke up.

Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points, Joel Embiid added 20, and the 76ers rallied to defeat the Toronto Raptors 123-112, improving to 10-3 on the season.

The victory wasn't just about getting back into the win column. Philadelphia needed to show that Tuesday's performance wasn't going to carry over into another game.

After a terrible start, the 76ers finally looked like the team that had been playing some of the best basketball in the Eastern Conference.

Philadelphia Nearly Repeats Tuesday's Mistakes

The most disappointing part of the Celtics loss wasn't necessarily the 22-point margin.

It was how poorly Philadelphia competed against a team it expects to challenge for Eastern Conference supremacy.

Boston controlled that game, shooting effectively from the perimeter and exposing weaknesses in Philadelphia's defense.

Against Toronto, those same problems appeared almost immediately.

The Raptors attacked Philadelphia early, building a 33-16 advantage in the first quarter.

RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley were giving the 76ers problems offensively, while Philadelphia struggled to generate consistent scoring opportunities.

For a team coming off an embarrassing loss, it wasn't the response anyone expected.

But the 76ers finally started playing with some urgency.

Philadelphia erased the deficit with a strong second-quarter performance, outscoring Toronto 36-27 to enter halftime tied at 60.

The turnaround continued after halftime.

The 76ers scored another 36 points in the third quarter, taking a 96-87 advantage into the fourth.

After being outplayed early, Philadelphia had taken control of the game.

And this time, the 76ers weren't going to let it slip away.

Tyrese Maxey Leads the Response

Maxey wasn't going to allow Philadelphia to lose another game without putting up a fight.

The 76ers guard scored 27 points on an efficient 8-of-13 shooting, finishing at 61.5 percent from the field.

He also recorded eight assists and two steals.

That's the kind of performance Philadelphia needs from Maxey.

He wasn't forcing difficult shots or trying to score 40 points to rescue the team. He picked his opportunities, attacked when necessary and kept his teammates involved.

His decision-making was just as important as his scoring.

Philadelphia finished with 31 assists, compared with 26 for Toronto.

The ball movement was noticeably better than what the 76ers displayed against Boston.

And Maxey was directing much of it.

VJ Edgecombe Continues to Show His Value

One of the most encouraging performances came from VJ Edgecombe.

The second-year guard finished with 15 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and three steals.

Those are impressive numbers for a player who doesn't need to dominate the basketball to make an impact.

Edgecombe is developing into the type of player every contending team needs.

He can defend, rebound, create opportunities for teammates and contribute offensively.

Against Toronto, he did a little bit of everything.

Philadelphia also received 18 points from Jaylen Brown, who was looking to rebound from an emotional and disappointing first meeting against his former Celtics teammates.

Brown didn't have to carry the offense Thursday. With Maxey controlling the tempo and Edgecombe contributing in several areas, Philadelphia had enough production throughout its lineup.

Anfernee Simons was particularly effective off the bench, knocking down five three-pointers.

Those contributions helped Philadelphia overcome the absence of LeBron James, who missed the game because of back management.

The 76ers are now 3-0 this season when James doesn't play.

Embiid Gives Philadelphia a Scare

Philadelphia nearly suffered a much bigger loss than anything reflected on the scoreboard.

Embiid went down during the opening quarter after a collision that appeared to affect his right knee.

The sight of Embiid on the floor was enough to concern everyone watching.

He eventually returned and finished with 20 points, four rebounds and three assists in 28 minutes.

That's encouraging, particularly considering his history of injuries.

But Philadelphia still needs more consistency from its star center.

Four rebounds from a player of Embiid's size and ability isn't particularly impressive, even if he was dealing with an injury scare.

The 76ers need Embiid to establish himself around the basket, create second-chance opportunities and remain a dependable scoring option.

His 20 points helped Philadelphia win Thursday.

But the team will need more from him when facing stronger opponents.

Toronto Had Its Opportunities

RJ Barrett was outstanding for the Raptors, finishing with 31 points, 14 rebounds and five assists.

Quickley added 26 points and six assists.

Toronto also received 14 points and five blocked shots from Collin Murray-Boyles.

Despite those performances, the Raptors couldn't maintain their early advantage.

And for the second consecutive night, Toronto watched a substantial lead disappear.

Wednesday, the Raptors squandered a 22-point advantage against Boston before losing 98-93.

Thursday, they jumped ahead of Philadelphia by 17, only to suffer another defeat.

That's a difficult two-game stretch for a team already struggling to establish consistency.

Toronto was without Kawhi Leonard and Scottie Barnes, two important pieces of its roster, but the Raptors still had opportunities to win both games.

The inability to protect those leads is becoming a concern.

The 76ers Still Have Work to Do

Philadelphia's 10-3 start is impressive.

But the Celtics game revealed that the 76ers aren't quite where they need to be.

Boston exposed weaknesses that Toronto nearly exploited again Thursday.

The slow starts are concerning, especially for a team with this much offensive talent.

Maxey, Brown, Embiid and James give Philadelphia multiple ways to attack opponents.

Edgecombe provides additional versatility, while Simons and the bench can contribute when the starters need help.

There is enough talent on this roster to compete with the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

The question is whether Philadelphia can put together consistent performances against those teams.

Beating Toronto was important.

But the 76ers can't continue falling behind by double digits and expect to recover every night.

Especially when the competition gets stronger.

S³ Assessment

Philadelphia responded to Tuesday's disappointing loss with a much-needed victory.

Maxey was outstanding, Edgecombe delivered another impressive all-around performance, and the supporting cast provided enough offense to overcome Toronto's early advantage.

The 76ers also shot 52 percent from the field and 43 percent from three-point range.

That's a considerable improvement from what they displayed against Boston.

But there's still a difference between beating a struggling Toronto team and competing with the Eastern Conference's elite.

The 76ers have the talent.

They have the scoring.

And at 10-3, they certainly have the record.

What they need now is consistency.

Philadelphia bounced back Thursday night.

The next challenge is making sure Tuesday's performance against Boston doesn't become a recurring problem.