NBA star Joel Embiid was a ball hawk at the Home Run Derby

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid is shot blocker on the basketball court who turned into a ball hawk during Monday’s Home Run Derby in Miami.

Embiid and Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill were among the stars in attendance for the event at Marlins Park, but unlike most celebrities they weren’t hanging around the dugout. They were right in the middle of the action, setting up shop in the standing room area outside the Clevelander beyond the left field fence.

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With sluggers like the eventual Home Run Derby champion Aaron Judge, runner up Miguel Sano and defending champion Giancarlo Stanton swinging for the fences, they were in a prime position to snag a few baseballs, and that’s exactly what Embiid did.

His first attempt was a little rough. We’ll excuse him for that. This Miguel Sano round-winning rocket had everyone out there shook as it rattled around the premises.

But the persistence, patience, and we’d even add courage with those guys swinging, paid off a short time later when Embiid got his massive mitt on one of the bonus round home run balls.

As they say in Philadelphia, “trust the process.”

Also notice how that baseball looks like a grape in Embiid’s hand.

Now check out what it looked like when Embiid collected his second baseball of the evening.

We often marvel at how large Aaron Judge is, but for perhaps the first time all season he wasn’t the largest human being in the building on Monday. At 7-feet even, Embiid towered over everyone in stature, which no doubt helped him walk away with a pair of souvenirs. But there’s no debating who the biggest winner was. That title belonged to Aaron Judge.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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