Entering the 2014 NBA draft, the Philadelphia 76ers were looking to find “the guy,” somebody to build around and lead the Sixers into their next era of greatness. The first year of The Process yielded a 19-63 record in the 2013-14 season, and Philadelphia was rewarded with the No. 3 pick.
With that selection, the Sixers went with big man Joel Embiid out of Kansas, who probably would have gone No. 1 if not for an injury while in college. He fell into Philadelphia’s laps and it appeared the Sixers had their guy.
However, the big fella missed the first two seasons of his career due to foot injuries, and some wondered if he would ever play in the NBA.
Finally, Embiid made his NBA debut in the 2016-17 season and he made a huge impact in the 31 games he played as a rookie, averaging 20.2 points and 7.8 rebounds. More importantly, he gave the Sixers and their fans hope.
In the 2017-18 season, Embiid averaged 22.9 points and 11.0 rebounds while guiding the Sixers to the playoffs, and he has continued to get better. He was in the MVP conversation in the 2020-21 season when he averaged 28.5 points and 10.6 rebounds. Then he led the league in scoring in the 2021-22 season, 30.6 points, and he averaged 11.7 rebounds. He was the runner-up in MVP voting in both seasons.
After finishing his sixth season, Embiid is looking to get the Sixers to the mountaintop in 2022-23. Philadelphia has fallen in the second round in four of the last five seasons.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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