PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia 76ers entered Game 4 with the Boston Celtics on Sunday needing a win to avoid the dreaded 3-1 hole. There was some added energy for the Sixers as they welcomed Joel Embiid back to the floor after he underwent an emergency appendectomy on April 9 as they looked to ride that momentum.

After a brief run for Embiid and Co., the Celtics put it on early and often. They led by as many as 21 in the first half before the lead ballooned to 32 as they earned a 128-96 win to push the Sixers to the brink of elimination. Payton Pritchard had 32 points, four assists, and four rebounds off the bench and Jayson Tatum had 30 points, 11 assists, and seven rebounds while Jaylen Brown had 20 points and seven rebounds.

Embiid had 26 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists in his return while Tyrese Maxey had 22 points and and six assists, and Paul George added 16 and four rebounds. Quentin Grimes had 12 points and six assists for Philadelphia off the bench.

With the return of Embiid, it meant Maxey’s shot attempts went down a bit. He didn’t attempt a shot until the 3:05 mark of the first quarter as he had a tough time really getting into this one. He was able to make things happen with his passing, but the Sixers needed to find a way to get him his shots as well. There was a stretch in the second quarter when he and Embiid ran their two-man game which led to some success, but Maxey was quiet in the first half as the Celtics built their lead. He did knock down a 3 to start the third quarter, but it was an overall tough night for the All-Star guard.

Edgecombe’s shooting struggles continued to start the night. He missed two very open 3-point looks and was out of sync a bit on the offensive end of the floor. Overall, Edgecombe finally looked like a rookie. Outside of the Game 2 explosion, the normally poised rookie is beginning to finally show that this is, in fact, his first go-around in the NBA. He will have to find a way to bounce back in Game 5 on Tuesday.

It was a tough night for George. He was unable to get much going on the offensive end, despite getting some good looks, and had a tough night shooting the ball and was unable to make an impact on the glass. He found some success when he put the ball on the floor and was able to finish at the basket, but it was too little, too late. It was an overall quiet night when the Sixers really needed him to knock down shots and keep the scoreboard moving.

One has to give Oubre for giving great effort in this one. He got after it on the offensive end as he put the ball on the floor and attacked the basket. The issue is that he was unable to find much success on those shot attempts. He also had some miscues defensively as he committed some questionable foul calls on that end and Boston was able to get things going on its end.

Appendectomy? What appendectomy? Embiid looked like himself in his first stint out on the floor. He drew two fouls on Celtics big man Neemias Queta and then made life miserable for Nikola Vucevic in the paint. He was knocking down free throws while also being efficient in the paint. With that being said, he wasn’t able to get much going with the jumper. He missed some looks in the mid-range and struggled with his 3-point shot as well as being a step slow defensively. His mere presence was a big lift, but the Sixers looked a bit out of sync with him on the floor. While he deserves so much credit for toughing it out and being there for his team, he was a bit out of sync at times and it was apparent in Philadelphia's play.

The initial stint for Drummond did not go great. The Celtics hunted him on pick-and-rolls and were able to generate a lot of offense with him on the floor. He was a minus-9 in two minutes and committed two fouls. He made his return later in the first half, but then left with an injury which led to Bona receiving minutes. He did end up returning in the second half, but he was unable to grab a rebound in this one.

After a tough Game 3 effort, Grimes found success early. He knocked down a triple on his first attempt and then was able to put the ball on the floor and attack the basket for a slam. Those were buckets the Sixers needed as Boston was building its lead. He, at least, gave the Sixers some scoring and playmaking for the bench unit.

The young big man had to enter after Drummond suffered an injury and he made some things happen. He was active around the basket and finished on the offensive end while providing a ton of energy to a team that really needed it.

The initial stint for Edwards didn’t produce much. He was unable to get anything going on the offensive end and had a tough showing defensively. He didn’t get second half minutes until the game was decided.

After not playing at all in Game 3, Barlow received a look early in this one when Boston was dominating the glass. He wasn’t able to make much of an impact as the Celtics neutralized him a bit. He didn’t get a look after halftime until the game was decided.

This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Player grades: Joel Embiid returns, but Sixers drop Game 4 to Celtics