INDIANAPOLIS - Joel Embiid has spent much of his Sixers career fighting for clean touches, nudging for space and trying to catch the ball where he wants it instead of where the defense allows. That’s why the early evidence of LeBron James feeding him in Wednesday night’s road win over the Indiana Pacers felt so different.
James was hunting Embiid from the jump, and the connection showed every version of the pass a big man dreams about: a pocket pass at the nail, a standard pick-and-roll feed, a sharp entry into the post and a high-low delivery over a fronting defender. If there’s a way to get Embiid the ball, James can do it.
That matters because once Embiid is actually in position, the offense changes shape. He can score on his own, or he can make the next read.
And when Indiana fronted him on the block, James could flash to the middle and drop the ball exactly where it needed to go. That opened the floor for the rest of the offense, including Tyrese Maxey on the wing.
"Extremely [valuable], because he's tall, you know what I'm saying? So sometimes, myself, I'm only 6-foot-3, so when they're fronting Joel or different things like that, I can't always see him," Maxey said. "So being able to pass the ball to a guy like LeBron... who could see over the defense and make those passes is really good."
Embiid’s night was his most efficient scoring performance of the season, and it started fast. After several sluggish offensive openings lately, he was in rhythm right away, helped along by James repeatedly finding him and letting him work against a shallow Indiana frontcourt. That set the tone for the Sixers and helped create the flow Embiid has too often had to manufacture himself.
LeBron to Embiid is unstoppable pic.twitter.com/cZrA5kyfpc
- 76ersMuse (@76ersMuse) October 28, 2026
The middle of the floor was the key, just as Embiid said it should be. He described that space as the place where he does his best work, and he also acknowledged that the Sixers have not gone there enough.
"I think where I made my life is in that middle of the floor. That's what I'm good at.
That's what I do. I feel like we haven't gone enough to that, but that's probably one thing that we've got to add," Embiid said.
"Obviously, having [Harden], you know, probably the best playmaker I've played with so far, always finding me in those pocket passes, and those are my shots. So I feel like we haven't tapped enough into that.
So, that start was a good start. Obviously, you've got Bron that can make those plays.
Great playmaker. Tyrese is working on that.
So, yeah, that's something we can use, because I'm so efficient in that area. So, yeah, we've just got to keep on going and keep getting better."
Embiid has long been one of the league’s most dangerous post scorers, and he has done it without always getting the ball in the easiest spots. Now he has James, who can make those entry windows look much bigger than they are.
Asked whether James is the best post entry passer he has played with, Embiid pointed to another former teammate.
"Yeah, I mean, Nico is up there. You've got Nico," Embiid said.
"I think most of the time, entry passes are more about basketball IQ. Knowing your angles and how to throw the ball.
Those two are up there."
Nurse also sees the same thing. James does not need Embiid to be fully uncovered to make the connection, just enough of a seam to thread the ball through.
"Yeah, I think he doesn't need Joel to be wide-wide-open," Nurse said. "If there's a sliver of a lane there or an angle, he can find that, and I think that's huge."
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