Player grades: Joel Embiid returns, but Sixers fall to Hawks at home

PHILADELPHIA -- A much healthier version of the Philadelphia 76ers played host to the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday looking to keep things moving in the right direction. The Sixers were able to pick up a road win on Friday in Brooklyn and were looking to build off that performance with Joel Embiid back on the floor.

The Sixers looked pretty solid when considering the lack of chemistry their stars really have on the floor. This is only the 19th game that Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George have all played together and there was some nice cohesion between the trio at times. In the end, that was the only positive for Philadelphia as the Hawks were the ones who walked away with a thrilling 142-134 win in double overtime. Jalen Johnson had 41 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists for Atlanta.

Embiid had 18 points in his first game since Nov. 8, Maxey had 44 points, nine assists, and seven rebounds while George had 16 points, seven rebounds, and five steals. Quentin Grimes hopped off the bench and had 28 points and 10 rebounds, Dominick Barlow had 10 points, six rebounds, three assists, and two steals, and VJ Edgecombe added seven.

Here are the player grades following the loss:

Tyrese Maxey: B-plus

After a slow start, Maxey put his head down and got into the paint with his blinding quickness and physicality with the basketball. The Hawks have some elite defenders on the perimeter and they had some success defending the Philadelphia All-Star, but Maxey’s relentless attacking eventually paid off and allowed him to get to the free-throw line as he put pressure on the rim. His 3-point shot was off in this one, but he got to the foul line at a high rate which allowed the scoreboard to continue moving. With that being said, Maxey had some bad turnovers in this one—which is something Atlanta feasts on—and it contributed to the fourth quarter struggles. However, he was terrific down the stretch of the fourth including drilling the game-tying 3-pointer with 8.3 seconds left and coming up big in both overtime sessions. He did miss two critical free throws at the end of the first overtime which led to Johnson having the chance to force the second OT.

VJ Edgecombe: C

In his return from injury, Edgecombe knocked down a triple, glided to the basket for a tough layup, and was terrific on the defensive end with his activity in the early going. The Sixers missed his ability to cause havoc with his athleticism and energy on both ends of the floor. As time moves on, Philadelphia will have to find a way to feature him a bit more when the other two stars are on the floor as well. He only took six shots overall and didn’t do much in the second half.

Paul George: C-plus

George had a good look to start the night coming off a dribble hand off opportunity with Embiid, but he wasn’t able to convert on it. That led to a slow start for him, but after some time on the bench, the 9-time All-Star re-entered and was able to find a rhythm. He had a nice turnaround in the post and then knocked down a catch-and-shoot 3-point opportunity. On a minutes restriction, George wasn’t able to find much of a rhythm overall, but he did some nice things defensively to give the Sixers a boost. He missed some critical looks in the fourth quarter, too, as the Sixers were unable to find an answer for Atlanta's avalanche.

Dominick Barlow: B

The energy that Barlow brings to the floor is a huge help to this group. It was a bit of a slow start as the Sixers adjusted to having everybody back out there, so things were a bit off, but if there is one constant that players can play with, it’s energy. Barlow was terrific in that department as he was all over the place defensively and was able to finish at the basket on the other end. With that being said, Barlow committed a tough foul on Johnson with 0.3 seconds left in overtime with Philadelphia leading by two. Johnson made both free throws to force the second OT session.

Joel Embiid: B-minus

The initial stint for the big fella was solid. He sized up Hawks big man Onyeka Okongwu and knocked down a mid-range look and then directed traffic from the high post to help Philadelphia get into a rhythm. He began the second quarter with a tough fadeaway jumper from the corner so he had some good moments for the Sixers. Limited to 6-minute shifts in each quarter, Embiid wasn’t able to do what he normally does in such a short amount of time, but his minutes in this one were terrific and he looked like his usual self. There was a bad stretch to start the fourth, however, as Atlanta took control so that is a bad spot on his overall performance.

Quentin Grimes: A-minus

The initial stint for Grimes off the bench was terrific. He knocked down some really tough 3s off the dribble which allowed him to find a rhythm and his ability to put the ball on the floor and get to the basket was helpful in this one. He was sent to the locker room in the second quarter by the officials to be checked out and placed in concussion protocol following a hard fall. After returning, he continued his strong night. Grimes really gave the Sixers a big boost off the bench with his scoring and he was terrific on the defensive end as well.

Adem Bona: B

The bouncy big man did a terrific job of defending in the paint. With Bona back there, the Hawks had trouble finding open looks as he protected the basket with ferocity. His play in the fourth was terrific as he injected some life and energy into the Sixers after the Hawks got off to such a fast start.

Jared McCain: D

After missing his first two looks in this one, McCain had a nice pull-up in the midrange to contribute on the offensive end. The Hawks offer a lot of length and that bothered the second-year guard at times on that end of the floor. It was a tough night for McCain overall as he struggled to find a rhythm.

Justin Edwards: D-minus

The initial stint for Edwards didn’t produce much as he missed an open 3 and had an assist. Other than that, he didn’t do much. He missed an open corner 3-pointer in the fourth when the Hawks made their run.

Andre Drummond: Incomplete

Coming off the right knee injury in Brooklyn on Friday, the big man wasn’t moving as well as he was before the injury. He did contribute a bucket and a rebound in his initial stint, but coach Nick Nurse turned to Bona after that first stint.

This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Player grades: Joel Embiid returns, but Sixers fall to Hawks at home