NBA Playoffs: Sixers Lose To Heat As Joel Embiid Expresses Frustration

The Miami Heat leveled their first round series to 1-1 after an impressive 113-103 win over the 76ers on Monday night at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Sixers were in red-hot form in the build-up to the contest with their crushing 130-103 Game 1 win over the Heat last week making it 17 consecutive wins for head coach Brett Brown's side. However, a dominant second half display from the Heat along with a vintage performance from Dwyane Wade who scored 28 points, three assists and seven rebounds ended that run as the series now heads to Miami for the next two games.

It looked like the home side were close to a remarkable comeback in the fourth quarter as they cut down a 16-point lead to just two points. However, crucial misses eventually led to Wade burying multiple buckets to seal the game late on.

The defeat marks the Sixers' first loss since their March 13 defeat to the Indiana Pacers and despite previously going 9-0 without injured star center Joel Embiid, his absence was especially felt this game with the 24-year-old later expressing his frustration on Instagram, stating he was "f-----g sick and tired of being babied."

Brown admitted afterward it was the type of game where he wished Embiid was playing before responding to his social media post.

"You need Joel Embiid…I felt tonight it was a really strong example of how you wished you had him," Brown told reporters. "He [Embiid] just wants to play basketball, he wants to be with his team, he wants to play in front of the fans and he wants to see this through."

"When he's not able to do that, he gets frustrated and I respect his frustration. It's born out of competitiveness and it's born out of him wanting to be with his team," he said.

"You’re talking about a superstar, of course we are missing him [Embiid] here," Sixers forward Dario Saric said, adding that when he comes back, everyone feels like "he will kick their [Heat] a-s."

Embiid has been on the sidelines since March 28 after suffering a concussion and a fractured orbital bone following a collision with teammate Markelle Fultz during their win over the New York Knicks. The Cameroonian since underwent surgery and cleared the concussion protocol but was chosen to be rested by Brown on Monday as a precaution as it was "what's best for Joel's health."

Brown added before Game 2 that Embiid might participate in on-court work with coaching staff or players who are not in the regular rotation to build up his conditioning.

Embiid could, however, feature in Game 3 which takes place on Thursday. He averages 22.9 points, 3.2 assists, 11.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 63 games for the Sixers this season and will be crucial in their attempts to win a first NBA championship since 1983.