Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid is playing at a different level this year. His strong play for the Sixers has allowed him to enter the MVP race for the season and it has had a lot to do with the vast improvement he's had in his perimeter shooting.
Embiid himself attributes the development of this particular area of his game to one specific NBA legend — the great Dirk Nowitzki (h/t Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice):
Embiid says he and his trainer started watching a lot of old Dirk Nowitzki tape prepping for this year, which he credits for some of his success operating/catching at the nail this season
— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) April 17, 2021
Embiid has always been an elite scorer, but by improving his shooting from the perimeter, the 27-year-old has emerged as more of an unstoppable force on the offensive end. Right now, the Sixers big man is averaging a career-best 30.0 points per game on 51.6-percent shooting, which also happens to be a career-high mark for him. He's also connecting on 1.2 triples per contest on a highly efficient 37.9-percent clip, which are again, career-best numbers for Embiid.
There are few — if any — players out there that are like Dirk Nowitzki. The Mavs legend is widely credited for revolutionizing the game in terms of big men exhibiting an excellent game from the perimeter. If there's any 7-footer Embiid would like to pattern his mid-range game to then Dirk is certainly the right guy.
For what it's worth, Nowitzki bagged MVP honors once in his career during the 2006-07 season. I'm sure you've heard about Embiid's MVP narrative this term, so it truly is a distinct possibility that he also follows in Dirk's footsteps here.
Follow Us
Subscribe