The Thirteen Misfit Toys
By Bret Stuter
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Jan 30, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid dribbles two balls during pre game warm ups before a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
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Joel Embiid
No single player exemplifies the Philadelphia 76ers struggles moreso than Joel Embiid. Originally thought to be the best player of the 2014 NBA draft, he fell to a foot injury that saw his stock fall. With a Philadelphia team sitting at number three, that was just fine. The Sixers had drafted and rehabbed Nerlens Noel from the year prior, and were content to draft and rehab again. Until the rehab grew to two years. Now the team’s plans have been resynchronized to the new timetable. Grow players with huge upside this season, add Joel Embiid from rehab and Dario Saric from the European league, select up to four first round draft choices, move into a new training facility, and convert players who won’t make that super team into draft selections. So it’s another year of wait and see and hope and wait and see and … well, you get the picture. We’ve been updating you with the Embiid era, the latest news is the second surgery has been announced. So it’s clear that Embiid will remain on the roster until he is healthy. Then it will remain to be seen if two years hiatus can be overcome. Meanwhile, he will likely sit on the inactive list. And unless the Sixer sophomore’s step up, that is likely where the team’s playoff hopes will reside.
Next: Gerald Wallace