The Philadelphia 76ers will be leaning on Joel Embiid to do a lot of things in the 2021-22 season. There was always pressure on the big fella to lead the way for this team, but now with Ben Simmons out of the picture, Embiid will have to do even more out on the floor.
Embiid will undoubtedly put up big numbers, it’s what he does as he is the most dominant player out on the floor on a nightly basis, but he will need to be more of a leader this upcoming season. He has got to be able to lead this team on and off the floor in order for the Sixers to have success.
As Philadelphia wrapped up training camp on Sunday, coach Doc Rivers was happy with his superstar big man as a leader.
“He’s been great,” Rivers started. “Just everything. What he’s saying, what he’s doing, you got to do both. You can’t do one and not the other. He’s done everything. He’s missed very few reps in practice if any. I don’t know, maybe, if you go 100% of practice, Joel has been in 98% of the practices and has been good. That’s leadership. He’s really doing a lot of things that we need him to do.”
Vocally, Philadelphia relies on Tobias Harris a lot in terms of leadership, but even Harris has to acknowledge everything that Embiid is doing out on the floor in camp. He is stepping up and taking on a bigger role than he normally does for Philadelphia.
“He wants our team to win,” said Harris. “He wants to put us in the right position for us to be successful on the floor. We’ve had numerous conversations about our focus this year and where we want to go so for him it’s just, he’s talking a lot more to different guys, pulling guys to the side so you just see him evolve as a player now on the court, but on the court, and communication-wise I think that’s a big key for his growth and our team growth as well.”
On top of that, Embiid continues to take the next step in terms of his conditioning. Philadelphia needs him out there every night in order to have a chance at winning and the big fella has responded in a big way with his participation in practice.
“He looks great,” Harris added. “Right back where he left off in good shape. I think he’s in good cardio. His cardio was good as well, his wind is good out there, so he’s dominant, as always, and healthy so it’s good to have him compete in all the drills as Doc said like 98%, close to 100 really. He’s healthy so that’s a plus for us.”
The Sixers will need Embiid to continue to be a dominant force on the floor and he will get back at it on Monday when the Sixers take on the Toronto Raptors to open the preseason.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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