Before the Philadelphia 76ers took the court and delivered an impressive 121-109 win over the NBA leading Milwaukee Bucks, general manager Elton Brand made himself available to the media to give his thoughts on the team.
One question that popped up was superstar Joel Embiid’s balance of trying to be mature, but also have a lot of fun on the floor. Embiid recently said he is struggling with striking that balance and he wants to have more fun out there playing the game citing that his thoughts changed after the early season brawl with Minnesota Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns.
“I want Joel to have fun,” Brand said. “I want him to show his love for the game, he loves this game. I want him to have fun, I want him to be able to be himself out there, ride the energy of these fans, the spirit of these fans. We know how great the city of Philadelphia is, especially when it comes to supporting their sports teams, so I want him to have fun.”
The brawl with Towns cost Embiid a two-game suspension and it hurt the team a bit. Despite that, Brand wants his superstar big man to be himself out on the floor.
“I don’t want him to get fined,” he said with a laugh. “But I do want him to have fun out there and be himself and be dominant out there.”
Overall, Brand is happy with where his big man is at right now. The Sixers have had him on a load management plan to ensure his health for the playoffs and he is still putting up big numbers.
“A dominant player,” Brand continued. “He’s played 300 less minutes than he has last season at this time, seven less games than he has last year at this time. So I’m very pleased where he is.”
For the Sixers to seriously contend for an NBA championship when the playoffs begin in April, they will definitely need Embiid to focus up and make sure he’s feeling good. As long as he is at his healthy best and he’s motivated, the Sixers will always have a shot. [lawrence-related id=22146,22137,22128]