Joel Embiid Drops 59 Points Marking New Career High

Joel Embiid is on an absolute tear. The Philadelphia 76es big man is making up for the absence of James Harden. His latest performance was a 59-point effort against the Utah Jazz.

In the 105-98 win, Embiid dropped a new career high of 59 points, and it only took 28 shots to do so. In addition to the 59, Embiid put up 11 rebounds, 8 assists, and 7 blocks. The Sixers improved to 7-7.

“This is not about me,” Embiid said to ESPN. “We did it as a team. Obviously, the coaches put me in those positions and my teammates fed me the ball.

“I thought we had great spacing around everything we were doing. … Like I said, all the credit goes to my teammates.”

ESPN Stats and Information notes Embiid is the first player to outscore both teams by himself in a fourth quarter (26-21) since Tracy McGrady in 2006. Embiid is also the fourth player — along with Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Bradley Beal — to score at least 100 points across a back-to-back since the NBA-ABA merger.