The Sixer Sense
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Is Philadelphia ready for Joel Embiid’s Debut?

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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How Long a Journey

It’s tough to frame this in the right perspective without triggering some nay-saying, but the reality is that Joel Embiid was the top rated prospect of the 2014 NBA draft before his injury.  That injury and the concerns of both back and foot injury to a 7-foot plus prospect scared off NBA teams, except for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Now, some two years later, that first pick reputation is on trial, as Joel Embiid is knocking down the medical hurdles to play this season like a bowling ball upends pins in a strike.   But this has not been a journey without its toll.

During his rehabilitation, Joel Embiid watched as his team won just 28 of 162 games without him.  He carries the burden of knowing that the man who had enough faith in him as to select him despite concerns over his health, and invest two years of painstaking rehabilitation, lost his job just as the player emerged on track to play this season.  He watched the team draft and play young men, desperate for leadership which a player like Embiid could offer, wander through the 2015-2016 season searching for an NBA identity.  And he’s heard the detractors, the trolls on social media, taunt him at the fact that he’s only now becoming healthy enough to play.

And with each weight that has been piled upon the young man, he has stood just a little taller.  With each challenge, Joel Embiid has answered in the only way available to him – he’s shown a lot in practice videos:

And so we are eager to see if the young man has been worth the investment of time, energy, resources, and emotion.

Next: Open to Suggestions