Philadelphia centre Joel Embiid has become the 76ers lightning rod

Raptors fans, include Drake from his courtside perch, mocked Embiid with his own airplane celebration, wings wagging like Tom Cruise in “Top Gun,” as he left the court with some nine minutes remaining and the 76ers trailing by 28. He had 13 points.

Embiid has maintained all along that he means no disrespect when he rocks the baby, does a shimmy or cups his ear like Hulk Hogan.

It’s all about being myself and having fun, he said.

“At the end of the day that’s how I dominate. If you see me smile, that means I’m doing what I’m supposed to do. And I intend to be doing that in two days (in Game 6).”

While Embiid’s celebrations have been largely limited to one game in this series, Raptors fans have a long memory. And it hasn’t helped that Embiid is playing against the poker-faced Kawhi Leonard. Image-wise it’s like Jim Carrey meets Teller, of Penn & Teller fame.

To his credit, Embiid took the high road when the Scotiabank Arena crowd antics were raised in his post-game news conference.

“I didn’t notice. I just saw them shake their bodies,” he said. “I didn’t pay attention to what they were doing.

“Good for them,” he added.

Embiid also refused to use his ill health as an excuse during the series, saying Tuesday night he was just trying to ” do the right thing” and “come out and fight.”

Pressed on his health, he finally conceded: “It sucks. I know I’ve got to do a better job for us to win .., That’s on me. I can’t control my physical condition, but I can control how much I push myself and I try to do that. But I’ve just got to do more. I know that.

“I’ve got to go back to Game 3, the same energy, got to have fun. That’s one of the keys of me playing so well the whole season, this post-season. I’ve got to smile on the court. I’ve got to lift my teammates up. I shouldn’t care about offending anybody, I’ve just got to be myself.”

Any why not? The NBA has carved out a nice niche by selling its personality from the players’ fashion sense to its on-court athleticism. Even a lacklustre NBA game is likely to offer up plays that get you out of your seat.

Embiid is larger than life, even for the NBA. The 25-year-old from Cameroon is a giant man who would not be out of place as a body double for the man-mountain Ser Gregor Clegane on “Game of Thrones.”

See him in the dressing room with teammate Jimmy Butler and there are smiles galore. They have shared the podium at Scotiabank Arena with Butler, who has made a few waves himself in the past, nodding in approval when Embiid says the right thing.

When healthy, Embiid is a force to be reckoned with. He averaged 27.5 points a game during the regular season.

But he has not been healthy against Toronto.

Outside of his 33-point showing in Game 3, Embiid has scored a total of 52 points in the other four games. And in Games 2 and 5, which followed the stomach bug and respiratory issue, he had 14 turnovers combined.

No Brad Marchand clipped interview tomfoolery for Embiid. He faced the music.

“At the end of the day, I got to go out and do my job,” he said. “Tonight I made a couple of mistakes that I’ve got to fix.”

Philadelphia coach Brett Brown made a point Tuesday to credit the Raptors for their fine play — and to stand up for his US$25-million centre who has missed practices and film sessions because of his illness.

“Offensively there was a rhythm to his game that was clearly out of sync. He’s been in bed for two days … He was trying to do whatever he could to represent his organization and play basketball for the Philadelphia 76ers.”

“I think it’s grossly unfair some of the criticism that he gets,” he added. “I don’t understand that.”

For the Sixers, Game 6 beckons Thursday at the Wells Fargo Center.

“Nobody’s walking out of here (saying) woe is me, I promise you that,” said Brown.

And Embiid confirmed he told Drake after Tuesday’s game that he would be back in Toronto on Sunday for Game 7. No doubt, smiling.

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Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Philadelphia centre Joel Embiid has become the 76ers lightning rod

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