Joel Embiid beats Australia’s Ben Simmons in first NBA battle

In one of the most anticipated games of the 2022-23 National Basketball Association games of the 2022-23 regular season, the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Brooklyn Nets 137-133 on Wednesday. The reason why there was so much hype leading up to the contest is because this was the first time that two former teammates (Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers and Ben Simmons of the Brooklyn Nets) were playing against each other. The tension between Simmons of Melbourne, Australia, and Embiid of Yaounde, Cameroon, was part of the reason why Simmons did not report to training camp with the Philadelphia 76ers in September of 2021.

Since then, Simmons changed his mind and reported to Philadelphia after all, but shortly afterwards was suspended by the 76ers for declining to participate in a team drill during practice. (Dating back to the days of Allen Iverson, it is interesting how practices in Philadelphia have become the most controversial.) Then in February of 2022, the 76ers traded Simmons to the Nets in a blockbuster deal that involved James Harden. He did not play with the Nets the rest of the season because of back pain.

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Fast forward to Wednesday, and what we saw in the 76ers’ four-point win was more than a battle between Atlantic Division foes. In a game that saw Simmons and Embiid going head-to-head on the court, Embiid had a double-double (26 points and 10 rebounds), while Simmons had 12 points. The Nets were clearly missing their superstar in Kevin Durant, who was out with a medial collateral ligament injury.

This was the second time this season Philadelphia beat Brooklyn. On November 22, the 76ers were victorious 115-106, but Embiid did not play because of a foot injury.

With the win, the 76ers improved to a record of 31 wins and 16 losses, and are in second place in the Eastern Conference as winners of their last six games. The Nets are fourth in the East, with a record of 28 wins and 19 losses.

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