The Sixer Sense
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Don’t Forget About Joel Embiid’s Defense

By Josh Wilson

Jan 30, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid practices before a game against the Golden State Warriors at Wells Fargo Center. The Golden State Warriors won 108-105. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 30, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid practices before a game against the Golden State Warriors at Wells Fargo Center. The Golden State Warriors won 108-105. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Joel Embiid looks as if he’s primed for a huge offensive season with the Philadelphia 76ers, but let’s not forget about his defensive skills.

Joel Embiid is, for the first time in his career, finally ready to play in a regular season game. The big man who has yet to put a foot on the floor for the Philadelphia 76ers in a competitive manner will finally be ready to suit up and play for the team during the preseason, and will — barring any major setbacks — also appear in the regular season. Sixers fans are excited, as they should be.

Embiid has been injured over the past two seasons, and it’s been difficult for some fans to move past the idea that Embiid might not ever play a game in the NBA, and if he does, he might fall short of being what Sam Hinkie thought he would be when he drafted him.

On the other hand, there is a group of fans who is incredibly excited for Embiid’s debut, and incredibly excited to see what the big man can do in the key on the offensive side of things. Although he’s been injured, he’s been warming up before games and showing off post moves and jumpers.

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But there’s a side of the game that fans don’t seem to be excited about, and maybe we should be — his defense. During his time at Kansas, Embiid was known for his defense even more than his offense, just because of how dominant he was on that end of the floor. Coming into the key with the ball while Embiid was there was simply a do not do, and he didn’t have trouble getting on the perimeter and defending the ball once in a while as well.

While at Kansas, Embiid averaged an impressive 2.6 blocks per game, while averaging almost an entire steal per game as well. He was tied with Andrew Wiggins in his freshman season for defensive win shares, with 1.7. When looking at win shares per 40 minutes, Embiid led the team by far.

Like in the NBA, his injuries slowed him down in total win shares, as he appeared in 7 fewer games than Wiggins.

Embiid’s incredible length was one of the main reasons he was such a defensive threat in college. Since coming into the NBA, he has reportedly grown, making himself an even more dangerous defensive tool.

Embiid had no trouble guarding players on the perimeter, and then slipping back into the key later in the same play. Simply put, he was a defensive wall, and a huge reason that opposing teams had trouble scoring. Putting a talent like that on an NBA roster is incredible, and if Embiid can fill out to be even a portion of what he was at Kansas, the Sixers will be set up well on the defensive end

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This is really something the Sixers need. This past season, the Sixers were 29th in opposing points per game, the year before they were 20th, and two years ago they were dead last.

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What we should take away from the development of Embiid thus far is this — Embiid has done a great job of developing his offensive game while being injured. All the while, it’s important to remember that all of that is building off of an incredible defensive game that he demonstrated while at Kansas.