Look for the Joel Embiid-Hassan Whiteside matchup to tilt the balance of power in the Miami Heat’s first round playoff series.
It would be easy to believe that Joel Embiid versus Hassan Whiteside could shape the first round matchup between the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat. However that is said with the perception of things being slanted one-sided.
What if someone told you that the big man duel could be as entertaining as their Twitter “beef?”
To some, a statement like that is laughable. The Embiid-Whiteside battle is nothing more than a social media competition. To put the focus there would be the easy route though. So let us take it to the court.
Over the course of two seasons, Embiid and Whiteside have only gone head-to-head four times during the regular season. And while the Philadelphia center’s chatter has garnered him more attention, Whiteside has quietly complied the better numbers.
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Although the big men are 2-2 against each other, Whiteside has outrebounded (10.3 to 7.8), outshot (61 percent to 44 percent) and averaged more blocks (2.5 to 1.5) than Embiid in their matchups. On the other hand, Embiid has averaged more points (19.8 to 19.3) and more assists than the Heat center. Still, Whiteside’s overall lines look better.
But is this just a case of numbers telling lies?
Statistics aside, there was only one game where it actually felt like Whiteside got the upper hand and was dominate against Embiid. This was his 28-point, eight-rebound effort in their March game. The same game Embiid promised not to forget after it looked like a swipe was taken at his oft-injured back.
As dirty as it may sound, that type of aggression is what the Heat have been missing in the showdowns. The numbers always look decent, but the eye test often shows Whiteside’s efforts more aligned with the “soft” tag his 76ers counterpart gave him.
Instead of flip shots and missed layups, he has to dunk everything against Embiid. Or he will be regulated back to the bench for Kelly Olynyk‘s spacing and Bam Adebayo‘s energy.
But believe it or not, the frustration goes both ways. In the four times that they have seen each other, Embiid has had to sit down with five fouls on three different occasions.
Embiid has been ruled out for at least Game 1, so getting and keeping both big men on the court will be a task. But with 0.5 points separating the two teams’ season series, a slight jolt from either big man could put one team over the top.
Next: The Heat are positioned to beat Philadelphia in the playoffs
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