The Masked Man stayed behind the last time the Philadelphia 76ers visited FTX Arena.

But even then, even before Joel Embiid was sidelined by a concussion and orbital fracture for the first two games of this best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series, the Miami Heat recognized the challenge ahead, knew the havoc wreaked in the opening round by Embiid against the Toronto Raptors would eventually produce a largely unsolvable riddle.

In Games 3 and 4 of this series, a pair of 76ers victories, that largely proved to be the case.

So after Emiid took flight for the first time in the matchup, in a 2-2 tie going into Tuesday night’s Game 5, the recognition remained the same as what Heat coach Erik Spoelstra articulated going in.

No simple solutions.

The double teams that shrunk Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young further down to size in the first round, the wave of bodies that rendered James Harden mortal in the first two games of this series, could not produce easy Embiid answers.

As Spoelstra said, Embiid has developed counters to years of opponents attempting to counter his unique skill set.

“Without a doubt,” Spoelstra said. “And I think that’s just a volume of reps and experiences he’s gotten. He’s seen now every time a double-team, because nobody is just going to move him one-on-one. He’s too skilled, too talented. And he can get to the free-throw line too easily.

“It shows you how advanced he’s become in his decision making.”

So Jimmy Butler angles over, P.J. Tucker sneaks across from the weak side, and still, Embiid has gotten numbers perhaps not up to his typical standards, but more than enough to produce victories and reduce this equation to best-of-three.

“And if you’re always coming with the same trap, he’s going to figure that out halfway through the first quarter,” Spoelstra said of the chess match in the middle. “You have to have different ways to do it, and hopefully sometimes have an element of surprise.”

Some of that surprise has been practically astonishing, Kyle Lowry, Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, Tyler Herro at times part of the Heat’s defensive equation against Embiid, as the 76ers catch the Heat in their familiar switches.

In the previous round against the Raptors, which the 76ers took 4-2, there was length from almost every direction. And while Pat Riley long has favored rangy defenders for his Heat rosters, that is not how the current mix is built.

“You’re not going to catch him by surprise very often,” Spoelstra said of Embiid seeing waves. “It’s more of not letting him just go to work and control everything offensively every time.”

With the series to run at least through Thursday’s 7 p.m. Game 6 at Wells Fargo Center, the work in the laboratory will continue.

“There’s no absolutes,” Spoelstra said. “That’s the thing about great players. You can’t do the same thing and just say, ‘This is going to be it and live and die with it.’

“Great players will make you die with that. And their spacing has gotten a lot better. And they have more ways to attack.”

As Embiid reemerged, so has Harden, as well as other 76ers components that had been dormant through those first two games at FTX Arena.

Now it had become about containment, masking coverages as best as possible against the Masked Man.

“I don’t think we’re going to have anything that’s going to totally surprise him,” Spoelstra said.

And if they do, 76ers coach Doc Rivers recognizes he now is maneuvering from a better position.

“Any plan where you can have Joel as part of the plan is a much better plan,” he said.

So on it goes.

“It usually comes down to who can get to who,” Spoelstra said, “who can make who blink.”

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