Joel Embiid Appears to Be in Phenomenal Shape

Joel Embiid did not get off to the best start in his NBA career. He has missed his first two seasons due to injury, and last year the leaks started to fly about his discipline and conditioning. In these two videos, the Sixers big man appears to be in great shape. An obvious caveat is that he is posting up his coach, Drew Hanlen, who is not a slouch but is also not the size of players Embiid will be going up against. Nevertheless, this is a positive development.

In many ways, Embiid – and the lack thereof – was the embodiment of the Sam Hinkie process (which the player still wholeheartedly embraces). Lots of theoretical upside, no immediate results. How Embiid performs going forward will perhaps contribute greatly to whether the retrospective view of Hinkie’s tenure can improve from the cellar.