Star big man Joel Embiid vows to come back even better for Sixers
The Philadelphia 76ers finished up the 2020-21 season with yet another Round 2 exit. They fell in Round 2 for the third time in four seasons after falling in Game 7 to the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. The final result left the team with more questions as they head into the offseason now.
One aspect of the team that does not need to be questioned is the play of Joel Embiid who had a terrific season. He averaged 28.5 points and 10.6 rebounds in the regular season while being named a finalist for the MVP award and leading the Sixers to the No. 1 seed for the first time since 2001.
Embiid followed that up by averaging 28.1 points and 10.5 rebounds in the postseason and he had 31 points and 11 rebounds on Sunday. However, he also had eight turnovers including a bad one late that sealed the loss.
“Losing, obviously, it’s gonna take a toll on me and it does and it’s doing it, but it’s also on me,” said Embiid. “I gotta be better. I gotta take another step when it comes to taking care of my body and my game as a whole, because I still feel like I have a lot of untapped potential that people haven’t really seen.”
If there is more to Embiid’s game, the league might be in trouble. Embiid did a terrific job in the 2020-21 season of showing off more of his game and he did a better job of taking care of his body. He did miss some time, obviously, with the various amount of injuries, but those were more freak injuries.
All in all, the big fella took so many steps forward during the season as a leader. He did a better job of attacking the double teams, he was able to add a face-up game in the post, and he also was knocking down the 3-point shot at a better rate than before. That is what is needed in today’s game as a big man.
“A lot of people get mad when I play away from the basket, but in today’s NBA, you got to be able to do everything on the basketball court especially if you’re the best player on the team and a lot of people look up to you when it comes to creating your own offense,” Embiid added. “I got to be able to do everything and I still feel like I have another part of my potential when it comes to whether it’s ball-handling or playing off the dribble and all that stuff and I’m gonna be me.”
As the Sixers head into the offseason, they will obviously have to improve. For as great as Embiid was, it obviously was not enough this season again and there is more that he still needs to do. The upcoming offseason and the following 2021-22 year will be telling when it comes to the big fella and his continued development.
“A lot of people complain if I don’t spend my time in the game the whole time on the block, but that’s not the way basketball is played,” Embiid continued. “There’s a spacing aspect comes that comes with it and the way I see myself, I’ve always seen myself as a complete basketball player.”
There were plenty of times when Embiid operated from both the block and the perimeter and at this point, he will have to take more steps forward as Philadelphia continues their title chase.
“I’m going to that next step and come back even better as a complete basketball player and just do what I do,” he finished. “I love playing on the block I love playing like a guard. I want to do both and I’m gonna do both.”
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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