Philadelphia 76ers fans have been told to "trust the process", which means to trust that even though their team traded away all their good players and tanked, they should still believe that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. After initially appearing like another wasted draft pick, it appears as though the 76ers have hit pay dirt with Joel Embiid, who is averaging 19.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game while also shooting 79.2% from the foul line in his first season healthy.
The 76ers drafted Joel Embiid #3 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft but due to back issues and foot issues, Embiid had to sit out for his first two seasons. Naturally, comparisons to Greg Oden and Sam Bowie started to come forth as a result since they were also highly drafted big men that had NBA careers derailed by injury. Fortunately for Joel Embiid, he doesn't appear to be destined for the same fate as them. The 76ers are being cautious with him and monitoring his minutes, but so far all appears to be going well.
During the 2014 NBA Draft, a lot of people were saying that Joel Embiid could wind up being the best player in the whole draft. He was garnering comparisons to Hakeem Olajuwon when he was coming out of Kansas, which might be the highest praise that any big man can receive. While he hasn't yet established himself as at the second coming of Hakeem Olajuwon, he is off to a great start considering how his first two seasons went in the NBA. He's gone from bust to boom during these past couple of months and is starting to look like the best player out of the 2014 NBA Draft class.
As far as the 76ers are concerned, they still have a ways to go, but the good news for them is that they appear to finally have their franchise player in Joel Embiid. He's delivering the goods and is on track to being the next elite center in the NBA. While the NBA is increasingly going more and more towards "small ball", quality big men are still valued at a premium. If Joel Embiid continues on the path he is currently on, there's no reason to not see the 76ers as serious contenders within a few seasons.
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