The Journey Begins For The 16 Year Old
From that moment on, his mind was made up that he wanted to play profession basketball. Not just participate, but to dominate the sport against the world’s fiercest competition. And he showed signs of doing so, thanks to that video, he was able to model his game after NBA Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon.
But Joel Embiid was far from the NBA. He needed one more thing – a door to open. And that door did open when Embiid was discovered at a basketball camp sponsored by Luc Mbah a Moute, a fellow native of Yaounde and an NBA player.
Up Up And Away
With Mbah a Moute serving as mentor, Embiid moved to the United States at the age of 16 to devote himself to becoming a professional basketball player.
Initially, Joel Embiid enrolled at Montverde Academy, which was Luc Mbah a Moute’s alma mater. Unfortunately, once there, he didn’t get enough playing time. And so after one year, he transferred to the Rock School in Gainesville, Florida. As a senior he led the team to a 33-4 record and state championship, by averaging 13.0 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game.
He was rated as a five-star recruit according to Rivals.com and committed to Kansas in November 2012.