It's only 9 games, but seriously watching Embiid as a rookie reminds me of being a kid watching Shaq on the Magic. I collected all of Shaq's rookie cards. It was exciting seeing a new NBA phenom big man appear in the league.
Embiid's (So far) Per-36: 29.4 points, 13.68 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 3.6 blocks, with 49%/50%/78% shooting.
Shaquille's Rookie Per-36: 22.2 points, 13.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 3.4 blocks, with 56%/0%/56% shooting.
It's really incredible considering Embiid has missed 2 years of basketball. It's going to be really interesting to see if he can stay healthy and what kind of production he'll have if he lasts long enough to have his minutes restriction lifted. What I've seen so far is unreal. Watching Anthony Davis as a rookie was amazing. Karl Towns was better. Embiid, in what little he's played, has been on that level at the very least.
Shaq, Chuck and Kenny referred to Embiid as a taller Chris Webber. What do you think of that comp?
Change your username to Jul1us 3rv1ng please. It makes sense for the content of your posts B-)
I already admitted I post as JulErvg06 on SixersBlog.com and spend all my time whining about how good D'Angelo Russell is.
Honestly though... Aside from Golden State becoming everyone's daddy for the next 5-10 years, Joel Embiid is by far the story of the season so far. A few months ago people were telling me they wouldn't trade RJ Hunter for him and scoffing when I suggested he was a Rookie of the year candidate. Fans here claimed he'd go late 1st in a 2014 re-draft. 9 games later, look where we are. It's been fun to watch. For the sake of the league, hopefully he stays healthy.
Lol, do you have any proof of this comment? It seems like you are baiting to me. Love Embiid though. He's a monster and could be better than any big man in the game. Doesn't remind me of Shaq at all though. He reminds me of Hakeem.
I don't want to call anyone out specifically because it's rude, but one poster made that comment. Another said the #23 pick was "fair value for Embiid". Another said "Embiid at this point isn't worth the #3 pick in any way, shape or form." Another poster said "There is absolutely no chance that Embiid will be a rookie of the year candidate." after I referred to him as a wildcard R.O.Y candidate. If Embiid stays healthy and keeps this up, a lot of folks here will look silly.
I don't really think anyone here looks silly, although there are obviously going to be a few people that worded their stuff poorly.
However, the consensus with Embiid was always that if he got healthy and didn't have ongoing issues he would be a very good player. I really don't recall a single person saying their comments like "I think he will be totally healthy, but I think he is going to be an awful player for his career cause he lacks mobility or can't shoot." There were a bunch of people that doubted he could ever stay healthy because he missed two full seasons and also couldn't finish his single season of college. I think it is fair to have those doubts after what happened (and obviously the 76ers did and Embiid himself admitted he also did at points in his recovery).
You've invented this idea that people thought Embiid would be a crappy player when healthy. If people said stuff like they wouldn't trade the 23rd pick for him it was because he would never be able to play. What I actually remember the most is people saying a trade would never happen because there was a huge catch 22. If Philadelphia was willing to trade us him, it meant his injury history really was screwing him over and he wouldn't be worth trading for. If they weren't willing to trade him it meant he was on track and was going to be a beast.
It would also be cool to just enjoy watching him play, which the majority of people on here have said they do, without the constant "told you so" and "everyone was wrong" jabs. It isn't really doing anything for anyone and in reality it is not even accurate.
Edit: Also most people thought he wouldn't contend for ROY cause it seemed like he would get enough minutes.
