Joel Embiid Just Proved the 76ers Need to Swallow Their Pride and Make a Move They’ve Been Delaying for Too Long
76ers big man Joel Embiid plays well enough to dominate a team, but is still stuck sitting on the bench. The 76ers should put their pride aside and make a move that would help win games sooner rather than later.
The “how old is joel embiid” is a question that has been asked many times. Joel Embiid just proved the 76ers need to swallow their pride and make a move they’ve been delaying for too long.
Joel Embiid can undeniably be the greatest player on a championship team, but that window won’t endure indefinitely. With Embiid’s injury history and his deliciously reckless playing style for a 7-footer, the Philadelphia 76ers’ franchise cornerstone may only have a few years remaining in his peak.
Embiid’s brilliant performance against the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night demonstrated that he can still be the greatest player in the world on any given night, but he’ll only be able to contend for a title this season if the Sixers swallow their pride and trade Ben Simmons.
Joel Embiid leads the 76ers to a thrilling victory against the Hornets.
During a game against the Charlotte Hornets, Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid looks on | Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
It’s not often in the NBA that a single individual can decide a game’s fate, but that’s precisely what occurred Monday night when the 76ers and Hornets met.
By the end of the first quarter, Charlotte had built up an 11-point lead. Embiid, on the other hand, took command in the second frame. In the fourth, the big went to the free throw line eight times and scored 13 points, giving the Sixers a 67-62 halftime advantage.
Despite the 76ers’ inability to control Charlotte’s undermanned squad all night, he added 13 more points in the third quarter and seven more in the fourth, and the game went to OT. Embiid found the fortitude to score six points in overtime and assist on the team’s lone other bucket of the session, while still being healing from a terrifying fight with COVID-19. Philadelphia came up with a 127-124 victory.
Embiid had 43 points (15-20 from the floor, 12-of-14 from the line), 15 rebounds, and seven assists in the game. In all three categories, he was the team’s top performer.
On Monday night, just two other players on the roster scored in double digits. It didn’t matter to the Hornets that the ball was almost always going to Embiid on every possession. The Sixers can’t afford to squander what was a masterpiece of a performance from a great talent.
The Sixers can’t afford to squander Embiid’s peak season.
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The Process was panned at the time, but it was during that trying moment for Sixers fans that they acquired Embiid, the franchise’s first MVP-caliber player since Allen Iverson.
Embiid provides the 76ers a chance to win their first title in almost 30 years, but they have yet to reach the Eastern Conference Finals with him on the team. And they’re running out of time silently.
Embiid will be 28 years old by the time the playoffs begins. After the age of 30, athletic centers begin to lose their peak, and most of them lack Embiid’s substantial injury history. The Sixers may only have a couple more seasons with Embiid at his best.
His dominance against the Hornets proved he’s still that talent, so the 76ers had best get serious about surrounding him with a team capable of contending for a championship next summer.
It’s time for them to swallow their pride and make a deal. Simmons, Ben
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= H2FU-P2VwQ
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Simmons’ trade value is nearly as low as it’s ever been, so the 76ers have been unwilling to sell him. Philadelphia rightfully wants a superstar in exchange for Simmons, but no club has so far agreed to match those expectations.
Daryl Morey, the Sixers’ president of basketball operations, has declared that he is willing to wait out this scenario for as long as it takes to obtain what he wants. That would be a catastrophic error.
Even if Embiid plays to his full potential, the Sixers are not a championship contender as they now stand. Simmons’ return to the lineup would alter things, but it doesn’t seem probable this season. Philly won’t get the haul it was hoping for when it initially began marketing Simmons, but he has to be sold before the end of February. Period.
Make another offer for CJ McCollum to the Portland Trail Blazers. Re-establish contact with the Indiana Pacers about Malcolm Brogdon. Keep asking until you get an impact guard or wing who can assist Embiid in achieving his ultimate aim of delivering a championship to Philadelphia.
He has the ability to do so, but he can’t do it on his own.
Basketball Referenece provided all stats.
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