Kevin Hart laughed as he tried to floss dance with a kid as they were both egged on by rapper Meek Mill. Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey
Lurie awkwardly waved his arms around the way any 60-something-year-old man
would attempting to look hip next to star entertainers.
This postseason potpourri of comic
Authentic
Cam Fowler Jersey , ex-con and champion unfolded on the sideline of
another 76ers’ romp.
Mill, the Philadelphia-born rapper released from prison only hours earlier, snagged the Game 5 headlines.
Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and the rest of the Sixers stole the show.
Embiid and Simmons shined again in front of Mill, and the dominant duo ushered the nightmares-into-dreams Process of the Philadelphia 76ers into the
second round with a 104-91 win over the Miami Heat on Tuesday night.
The 76ers, winners of 10 games just two seasons ago, are in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time since 2012. The Sixers won
the series 4-1 and turned the Wells Fargo Center into the wildest house party in
the city.
”I’ve been waiting for this moment,” Embiid said.
Embiid had 19 points and 12 rebounds, Simmons had 14 points and 10 boards, and the entire team was energized by Mill’s surprise appearance. Mill made a
dramatic return hours after Pennsylvania’s highest court ordered him freed while
he appeals decade-old gun and drug convictions.
They await the winner of Milwaukee-Boston. The Celtics lead the series 3-2.
The Sixers are the latest team to sweep up the city in a sports euphoria that hasn’t died down since the Eagles beat the New England Patriots to win the Super
Bowl.
Look around the arena, and the champs were all around.
Lurie was in the house and so were a handful of Eagles. The national champion Villanova Wildcats were feted during the game. The Wildcats posed with Mill in
the locker room and then stopped for selfies on the way to the court for a brief
celebration. The city has already thrown two championship parades this year –
the 76ers have played like a team that could add one more.
”We all got a taste of it with the Eagles, we all got a taste of it with Villanova’s tremendous
win
http://www.buccaneersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-ronald-jones-ii-jersey ,”
coach Brett Brown said. ”You feel it with the city from afar.”
He added: ”Everybody is excited to be a part of, what I think, is playing out to be a cool story.”
Embiid, who came to personify the Process, had his second consecutive double-double and tallied 56 points, 31 rebounds and nine blocks in just three
playoff games. Embiid again played in a black mask to guard a face injury, and
he’ll have plenty of time to rest and recover with the other Eastern Conference
playoff series expected to stretch into the weekend.
”We feel like we’re unstoppable and we can get whatever we want to,” Embiid said. ”That’s the goal and we’re going to do what it takes to get there.”
Here’s what else to know about the 76ers in the postseason.
MEEK FREE
This was no run-of-the-mill Game 5 victory for the Sixers. Mill was there just hours after being released from prison.
He was brought by helicopter to Philadelphia, where he rang the ceremonial bell to start the game. Mill sat courtside next to Hart and Sixers co-owner
Michael Rubin.
Rubin had organized prison trips with Embiid, Simmons and Markelle Fultz to support Mill, and the rapper’s songs played in the locker room and during
warmups.
”When he was in jail, I went to visit him. He wasn’t feeling good. You could tell
Russell
Bodine Jersey Elite ,” Embiid said. ”For him to come to this type of game
… I was just happy.”
DY-NO-MITE!!!
The 76ers caused a few eyes to roll around the league when they signed free-agent guard JJ Redick to a $23 million, one-year deal in the offseason.
Redick was coming off a solid four-year run with the Clippers, but even by NBA
standards, the Sixers appeared to overpay for the 3-point ace. Redick has been
worth every dollar, and he delivered again in Game 5. He made 5 of 10 3
pointers, all 10 free throws and scored a game-high 27 points.
It was the second time this postseason that Redick scored at least 27 points and the third time in his playoff career. He had consecutive 20-point games in
the postseason for the first time in his career.
”We’ve changed our goals like four times,” Redick said. ”First, it was make the playoffs, then win 50 games, then getting home court, then getting the No. 3
seed.”
All four goals have been reached.
ROOKIE ROCKS IT
Simmons had 14 points and 10 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the series. He is the first rookie to post at least four double-doubles in his first
five postseason games since San Antonio’s Tim Duncan in 1997-98.
Simmons was a force against the Heat. He had 91 points, 53 rebounds and 45 assists in the series and showed why he’s the favorite to win the NBA rookie of
the year.
”This is what I’m going to expect now
Marquis
Haynes Jersey Panthers ,” Simmons said.
—
The Latest on the Miami Dolphins anthem policy (all times local):
10:15 p.m.
The NFL and National Football League Players Association released a joint statement, saying:
”The NFL and NFLPA, through recent discussions, have been working on a resolution to the anthem issue. In order to allow this constructive dialogue to
continue, we have come to a standstill agreement on the NFLPA’s grievance and on
the NFL’s anthem policy. No new rules relating to the anthem will be issued or
enforced for the next several weeks while these confidential discussions are
ongoing.
”The NFL and NFLPA reflect the great values of America, which are repeatedly demonstrated by the many players doing extraordinary work in communities across
our country to promote equality, fairness and justice.
”Our shared focus will remain on finding a solution to the anthem issue through mutual, good faith commitments, outside of litigation.”
—
7:45 p.m.
Rashad Robinson, executive director of Color of Change, an online civil rights organization that has supported boycotting the NFL, points out that the
Dolphins’ policy puts protesting the national anthem on the same plane as
testing positive for drugs or domestic violence charges.
A positive drug test carries a potential four-game suspension Sylvester
Williams Jersey Lions , and domestic violence charges can carry a six-game
suspension and even a lifetime ban for a second offense.
”It speaks volumes about what they think about black people,” Robinson said. ”What the Dolphins and owner Stephen Ross are doing is making a real claim that
the injustices that people are speaking out against don’t matter.”
Robinson said he has been in touch in recent months with Ross’ Initiative in Sports for Equality, or RISE, to help find new leadership for the nonprofit.
RISE is ”dedicated to harnessing the unifying power of sports to improve race
relations and drive social progress,” according to the organization’s
website.
”(Ross’) idea of harnessing people’s political voice is shutting it down,” Robinson said.
– AP National Writer Errin Haines Whack reporting from Philadelphia.
—
7:15 p.m.
The Dolphins say ”all options are still open” regarding the team’s decision to include protesting the anthem on the large list of violations considered
conduct detrimental to the club and subject to a suspension of up to four games
under a team policy issued this week.
The ”Proper Anthem Conduct” section is just one sentence in a nine-page discipline document provided to The Associated Press by a person familiar with
the policy who insisted on anonymity because the document is not public. It
classifies anthem protests under a large list of ”conduct detrimental to the
club” that includes gambling, riding motorcycles and more, all of which could
lead to a paid or unpaid suspension, a fine or both.
—
.
