Wearing street clothes and a Phantom of the Opera mask, Joel Embiid walked out to half-court Saturday night.
He rang the mini-version of the Liberty Bell to “open the postseason” for the Sixers.
And then Philadelphia kept doing what it’s done for over two weeks – dominate the opposition in spite of their All-Star center’s absence.
The Sixers made it 17 consecutive victories counting their 16 to end the regular season and nine in a row without Embiid as they buried the Heat in the second half of a 130-103 victory at the Wells Fargo Center.