Getty Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers shoots over Jarrett Allen #31 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center on October 05, 2022.
While Joel Embiid has captured the hearts of fans of the Philadelphia 76ers throughout his eight seasons with the franchise, it sometimes feels as if he lacks the national respect he deserves. Coming in second place in MVP voting in consecutive seasons has added fuel to the fire as Embiid seemingly answered every criticism in his game but did not receive the award. However, this was not the case according to Patrick Beverely when chopping it up with Adam Ferrone of Barstool Sports on their debut podcast. Beverly had some strong praise for the Sixers superstar and referred to him as- “the most dominant player in the NBA.”
Patrick Beverly calls Joel Embiid the “the most dominant player in the NBA” 👀
Clip from The Pat Bev Podcast with @rone
Embiid’s Dominance
This should not fall under the hot-take category as Beverley has plenty of evidence to back this up. Embiid is coming off the best season of his career in which he averaged 30.6 points, 11.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.1 steals. He was the first big man to lead the NBA in scoring since Shaquille O’neil in 1999-00. The superstar tallied 13 games with at least 40 points on 10 rebounds and was the Sixers’ most important player on both sides of the ball.
Joel Embiid NBA ranks last season:
Points per game: 30.6 (1st)
Rebounds per game: 11.7 (5th)
Blocks per game: 1.5 (9th)
Player Efficiency Rating: 31.2 (3rd)
Win Shares: 12 (3rd)
Usage Percentage: 37.2 (2nd)
Box Plus/Minus: 9.2 (3rd)
Defensive Rating: 105.3 (9th)
His rare blend of size and skill makes him so challenging to guard and the 28-year-old deserves a ton of credit for continually adding layers to his game. Embiid’s 7-foot frame paired with his guard-like skills make him such a unique talent and earn him the spot among the most dominant players in the NBA.
Just as Beverley continued to discuss, at times there is sometimes simply nothing that can be done to stop the superstar. His massive frame and elite shot-making are an incredibly unique combination. During Ben Simmons’ absence from the team last season, Embiid took it upon himself to develop his ball-handling skills as the team greatly lacked them. It has now become commonplace for the 7-footer to take the ball coast-to-coast and attack off the dribble which many would not believe considering the post-dominant player he came into the NBA as.
Joel Embiid giving Chet Holmgren the business while in @TheRock’s hoodie? What a treat heading into the weekend.
Close your eyes @Three_Cone 😬👀
t.co/H5dMlLLlMf
Beverley’s Other Thoughts
Beverley and Rone, who is a Philly native and Sixers fan, further discussed the Sixers on the podcast as well. The scrappy defensive guard had high praise for head coach Doc Rivers and attempted to play off the poor postseason reputation that the coach carries. Beverley played three seasons under Rivers during their time with the Los Angeles Clippers.
He also was a teammate of James Harden with the Rockets and believes he will be “solid” in his role on the Sixers this year. Beverley cut the former MVP some slack for last season by talking about how difficult it is to fit into a team’s system in the middle of the year. In fairness to Harden, he still averaged 21 points, 10.5 assists, and 7.1 rebounds per game during his 21 regular season games with the team. Never one to sugarcoat anything, these soundbites were high praise from the current Lakers guard. It was only the debut episode of The Pat Bev Podcast and there surely will be plenty more intriguing quotes and conversations to come out of it.
While it is great to hear some of the Sixers getting respect for their on-court play, they must turn their attention to the start of the 2022-23 season. Their opening day matchup against the Boston Celtics is now under a week away and the team is doing its best to find its stride during the preseason. After an impressive offseason in which several impactful rotation players were added, expectations for the team have been raised. It will now be up to Embiid, Harden, and Rivers to find a way to overcome their poor playoff narrative together with the 2022-23 season their best chance to date of doing so.