Joel Embiid Is the Ultimate Test For the Philadelphia 76ers

Mar 7, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (left) and center Joel Embiid (right) share a laugh during warm ups before a game against the Atlanta Hawks at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Power Of Philanthropy

It’s never been done. You can’t do it that way. That’s not how it’s designed to be played.

Rules restrict, imagination breaks down those barriers, but the heart makes all things possible.

On one hand, there are those who see the pattern of Sam Hinkie considering each player as mere currency, with Hinkie watching each player’s value rise and fall like a stock on the New York Stock Exchange.  When the players value peaks, Hinkie is rumored to be there sitting by the phone, pulling the trigger, making the deal, and converting one more prospect into next year’s first round draft pick.  If this plays out, then as soon as Joel Embiid plays game minutes , operators will be standing by to field offers.

On the other hand, there are those who see the pattern of Sam Hinkie shopping in the recycle piles of NBA players, or even of those who never heard their name called.  They see him as an enlightened despot, a ruler of the kingdom of Philadelphia basketball who has infused the opportunity to become a professional basketball player with an almost philanthropic intent to give an opportunity to those who do not have the hope themselves.  If this scenarios plays out, the longevity and commitment of this team to foster the young Cameroon through health and family tragedy cannot be lost on the player.  As mercenary as professional sports, there is the occasional story where a team, an owner, a general manager, a head coach, or even a close friend and teammate, have stood alongside a player who must face a deeply emotional challenge.  In the case of Joel Embiid, everyone has stood behind him.  Even the city of Philadelphia, the national media punching bag over the legend of santa, snowballs, and batteries, has found the story of Joel Embiid touching.

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Despite the fact that he has never played a single minute of Philadelphia 76er basketball, there is not a fan who does not wish the young man well.  Here is a man, a pioneer, who is far from home, far from the basketball court, and far from delivering the promise of NBA draft day from 2014.  Does Philly turn their back on him?

No.

He remains a topic of interest to basketball fans, and therefor the occasional topic of sports articles.  Joel Embiid, whether by design or by accident, has revealed that Sam Hinkie does not abandon one of his own.  Patience, state of the art, all resources of the Philadelphia 76ers franchise are in motion to restore Joel Embiid to his “wow” ways of playing basketball.  In fact, Hinkie has not “cut his losses” on this one.  He’s acted more like a father who blocks all other factors out when he is trying to save his son.  Sam Hinkie is more than a general manager of a basketball team.  He is the father of this team’s rebuild.

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