Adrian Fedkiw
With Ben Simmons being out the first few months of the season, Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown thinks Joel Embiid can be the focal point of the team.
“I think that he is going to be the focal point both offensively and defensively,” Brown said via CSN Philly last week.
That’s interesting considering Jahlil Okafor averaged 17.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game during a promising rookie season a year ago. When healthy, however, I do believe Embiid brings more versatility to the team than Okafor, especially on the defensive end. Brown compared Embiid to a future Hall-of-Famer he used to coach in San Antonio.
“You see him and he just has ‘it,’” Brown said. “Years ago, you saw it with [Tim] Duncan. I see it with him in regards to a real target offensively and a real sort of centerpiece defensively.”
That’s quite the praise.
Embiid has shown a lot of promise over the first three minutes-restricted preseason games, flashing a smooth jumper, moves in the post and plenty of defensive ability. He netted 12 points in 13 minutes during his last outing against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night.