Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid and Utah Jazz big man Rudy Gobert are always mentioned in the running for Defensive Player of the Year. Gobert won the award in 2021 with Embiid finishing as the runner up and the two of them are considered two of the top defensive players in the league.
Embiid is also mentioned with Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic in the MVP race and the two of them are always being compared and mentioned in the same breath when it comes to the debate of the best big men in the league. Both of them can take games over in the blink of an eye and they do an excellent job of leading their teams to wins and dominating games in their own way.
Gobert sat down with Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks and he mentioned both Embiid and Jokic as his toughest matchups on a nightly basis:
Definitely Jokic and Embiid. They’re two guys that are pretty unique. I know that I need to be ready for those matchups because they put a lot of pressure on your team and you have to—there’s no perfect game plan, right? You have to always adjust. You have to adjust. You have to try to surprise them. You have to bring it to them differently than some some other guys. That’s what makes it exciting.
Embiid only played in one of the two matchups with Gobert and the Jazz in the 2021-22 season. He scored 19 points with nine rebounds in the home loss to Utah after he missed the road matchup in November due to testing positive for COVID.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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