The Sixer Sense
Fansided

Joel Embiid Is The Anti-Andrew Bynum

By Bret Stuter

Apr 8, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Injured Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) practices prior to a game against the New York Knicks at Wells Fargo Center. The New York Knicks won 109-102. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 8, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Injured Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) practices prior to a game against the New York Knicks at Wells Fargo Center. The New York Knicks won 109-102. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 2, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie (far left) watches as center Joel Embiid (21) walks out of the tunnel on crutches prior to a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 2, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie (far left) watches as center Joel Embiid (21) walks out of the tunnel on crutches prior to a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Have you any Dreams You’d Like To Sell?

Yes, he was not selected by a “basketball mind” with intuition and gut instinct.  Yes, he tops off the chart on statistics, but he doesn’t have a pedigree of 20 years of sub-NBA basketball to choose from.

No matter what you hang your hat on, it will always be a crap shoot.

In the end of chapter one, it was the injury to a highly touted NBA center that dashed the hopes of the city of Philadelphia.  A t the end of chapter two, it is the injury, and the patient investment of time and expertise, to a highly touted NBA center prospect who has rekindled the hopes of the city of Philadelphia.

This is more than a story about a young man from Cameroon, or about the math whiz NBA general manager who drafted him.   If there is a cult aspect to this story, it’s about faith.   The faith of the city of Philadelphia never wavered from her basketball team.  In fact, the city grew to love the team even more, pulling for the kids as though they were blue collar buddies at the warehouse, or lived across the street.

This is a story getting back up off the floor. About rebirth.  About believing in a happily ever after.  There is no wicked step mother in this story, nor an all-seeing eye atop a tower in Mordor.

Next: Can Colangelo Fix Philadelphia 76ers' Plunging Attendance?

It’s the story of the young man from Cameroon and his math whiz general manager who shared a dream.  And it’s about the city of Philadelphia, a city which now prays that both men see that dream come true.