The Philadelphia 76ers have been a team on the rebuild for the last several years and have become essentially a franchise jocking for position in the draft lottery year after year.
However, the 76ers appear to finally be taking strides in the right direction by putting together a promising young core group of players led by big man Joel Embiid. Offseason addition veteran guard J.J. Redick believes that the 23-year-old could be the primary foundational piece that can lead the franchise to a championship, according to Brian Seltzer of 76ers.com.
Redick says that Joel Embiid could be the anchor of a championship winning team.
— brianseltzer (@brianseltzer) July 9, 2017
Prior to suffering a meniscus tear in his left knee in the second half of last season, Embiid displayed much promise on the court in 31 games averaging 20.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks in only 25.4 minutes per contest.
Embiid clearly possesses the talent to become a superstar in the league, but it is the persistent leg injuries that have drawn some legitimate concern on whether he can stay healthy enough to handle the workload of an entire season. Until he can prove that, this narrative will remain around him.
That said, the 76ers have added a few key pieces to the puzzle this offseason by moving up to the first overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft to snag former Washington point guard Markelle Fultz and also signed Redick in free agency.
Philadelphia is far from being a championship contender, but if they are able to avoid the injury bug next season reaching the playoffs is an attainable goal.
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