To Max or Not to Max: Should the 76ers max Joel Embiid?

With Joel Embiid’s free agency approaching next summer, the Philadelphia 76ers have a difficult decision to make.

The Sixers Joel Embiid situation is very familiar to another in history. A situation in which a team suffered through having an extremely talented, yet injury prone center. No, I’m not talking about Greg Oden or Sam Bowie — I’m talking about the original injury prone Portland center, Bill Walton.

Philadelphia 76ers

Throughout his career, Walton was known for his on-court talents and injury troubles. On the court, Walton was an evolutionary Bill Russell. A defense-first big with excellent passing vision, Walton excelled in some of the most creative offenses of all time. Walton made his teammates better as well. At UCLA, Walton turned UCLA into one of the most efficient teams of all time. In Portland, Walton turned a Bad News Bears-type Trail Blazers team into the title contenders. In Boston, Walton anchored the second unit on one of the greatest teams of all time, the ’86 Celtics.

On the negative side, Walton was a distraction off the court. Walton had around two and a half healthy years in the league and sat out a total of THREE seasons due to foot injuries. Walton’s political activism was a huge distraction, even in Portland, one of the most progressive cities in the country. To make matters worse, Walton protested Portland’s medical treatment of his situation and as a result, sat out an entire season.

First the Cons

Walton’s pros and cons are very similar to Embiid’s. Embiid is a talented player on the court who has made a positive difference for the 76ers. He made the 76ers, a team who’s second best player was Robert Covington, into a playoff team during his time on the court. Embiid turned the Sixers into a top defensive team when he was on the court as well. You cannot say the same for former Sixers big, Nerlens Noel, who might get a max deal this offseason due to his “defensive skills”.

Off the court, Embiid could be classified as a distraction. Embiid’s love of Sam Hinkie and the process has likely irritated Bryan Colangelo, Hinkie’s successor. Embiid has openly been opposed to the minutes restriction created by the front office. Earlier in the season, Embiid even kicked a chair after being pulled out of a game over it.

Embiid’s social media presence, although great, has caused the center trouble. Early in 2017, a video of Embiid dancing shirtless at a Meek Mill concert spread throughout the internet. During this time, Embiid was injured and as a result, the action disappointed the 76ers. I mean, what organization wants their star, injury prone player to be dancing on stage at a concert?

Embiid has also only played 31 games in the past three years. There’s no great player that has played that amount of games and been fine. In the first three years of his career, Greg Oden played 82 games. In the first three years of his career, Bill Walton played in 151 games. Even Anthony Bennett played in more games than Embiid over his first three seasons.

Related Story: What the Future Holds for Richaun Holmes

The only star level player that has played in as little games as Embiid is Grant Hill. During an injury prone stretch from 2001-2004, Hill played in only 43 games. This should not be viewed as a positive, as Hill remained only a role player for the rest of his career.

Embiid’s injury concerns and attitude have made the Sixers front office have concerns about maxing the Kansas product. It has the front office asking questions like can we afford to max a player with such big concerns, can this core win a title, or is it safe to have two injury-prone superstars. These concerns are very real for the Sixers.