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When Philadelphia 76ers rookie Joel Embiid made his long-awaited debut in front of his home fans on Wednesday, he impressed not only the eager fans that packed a sold out Wells Fargo Center, but the opposing coach Billy Donovan as well.
The Oklahoma City Thunder coach had high praise for the big man after his team escaped with a 103-97 win.
“He's hard to guard,” Donovan told Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times. “He's herky-jerky. He's got a lot of (Hakeem) Olajuwon to him.”
While Donovan could seem to be part of the overreaction club, the comparison makes some sense, as his move set from the post is particularly advanced for a rookie – for two years he's gotten to soak in NBA coaching while in recovery mode.
Embiid scored 20 points on 6-of-16 shooting from the floor, making 1-of-3 from deep, and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line to go along with seven rebounds and two blocks in his limited 22-minute run.
“The atmosphere was great,” Embiid said. “Having the fans show up for the first game of the season was special. I knew this moment was going to special. It was great, but it was a little bit disappointing because I felt like we should've won.”
Embiid's quote tells you all about the Sixers' mindset this season. It's all about improving — there's actual ambition from the players and no more of a “let's stockpile picks” attitude, though we're yet to see how that stands after the big man carrousel involving Embiid, Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor turns out by the trade deadline.
