Sixers Fire Back at Reported ‘Distraction’ Caused by Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid, Sixers

Getty Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts after scoring during the second quarter against the Toronto Raptors during Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round at Wells Fargo Center on April 16, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid is a distant fourth on most of the early MVP ballots. Well, the ones being put forth by the sports gambling websites at least. Take all that stuff with a grain of salt. But Embiid’s dominant four-game stretch – 41.3 points per game, including a 53-point outburst – has incited a new MVP campaign.

Embiid has insisted he’s not concerned with winning the league’s highest individual honor. He’s not going to personally campaign for it. He’s moved on after two straight second-place finishes to Nikola Jokic. Some talking heads called his campaigning a distraction last year, citing it as the reason for another second-round playoff exit.

Sixers head coach Doc Rivers was asked if he was going to start lobbying for Embiid. No, he doesn’t have to do that. He doesn’t need to do that.

“I don’t know if it’s distracting or not. It’s a good question. I don’t know,” Rivers told reporters. “I’ve always been behind it. But you know who’s really behind it? It’s Joel’s play. And so, all the guys who end up in the running, they’re not campaigning except for by their play and that usually speaks for itself.”


Joel Embiid Works Hard Behind the Scenes

Embiid is a superstar in every sense of the word, according to Rivers. It’s backed up by how much extra time he spends on his craft. Embiid is constantly in the film room. He spends his free time devouring every minute of every NBA game. He studies specific plays utilized by other teams and lobbies Rivers to use them.

“The individual work he does with his guys, our guys, big film watcher,” Rivers said of Embiid’s behind-the-scenes work. “I’ve coached stars and then there are superstars, there is a difference. I think, unfortunately, we put them in the same group and they’re not in one group, and Joel is in that superstar category. The one thing I think that connects them all is their big students.

“There is not a game that goes by that Joel has not watched. Every morning we talk about the games from last night. We had trouble getting the ball inbounds the other night and the first thing he said was, ‘Did you see San Antonio last night? Three times in a row.’ And then today I said, ‘Did you see Miami?'”

Rivers and Embiid had a hilarious moment discussing the Bucks-Mavericks game from Friday night. Brook Lopez slipped under the defense on a back-pick and scored what turned out to be the game-winner on an inbounds pass from George Hill.

“We go back and forth on it, and he studies it,” Rivers said. “He studies plays. Milwaukee ran a play against Dallas where there was a back-pick for a 5 and I said, ‘Man, I wish we could run that. I wish our big guy could run that fast.’

“And he said, ‘You don’t think I can past [Brook] Lopez that fast?’ It’s funny. But they [superstars] are all the same in the guys that I’ve coached who are in that category, and I think that’s what separates them.”


Kings Coach Mike Brown Sees Generational Talent

Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown knows a thing or two about recognizing superstars. He coached a young LeBron James in Cleveland, then won three championships with Steph Curry as an assistant in Golden State.

The 52-year-old has seen and done it all in the NBA, including almost coaching Embiid. He was in the mix to take over in 2020 before the Sixers hired Doc Rivers. Brown is very familiar with what makes Embiid great, yet it was fascinating to hear him say it out loud.

“He’s special. How does he want to score? You have to double team him. Not only can he win a game for them, he can win a series for them,” Brown told reporters. “He’s a unique talent that comes around, I guess them call them generational talents, you know that comes around every once in a blue moon.

“Philly’s fortunate to have a guy like that because he makes average players really good because you gotta double ’em, and you need guys like that even when you’re facing a great defensive team late in the playoffs. A special talent that can score inside, outside, that demands a lot of attention – not just scoring but when it comes to rebounding and shot blocking and other things, too.”

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