HoF Patrick Ewing believes Joel Embiid is most talented center in NBA
In the 80s and 90s, Patrick Ewing was one of the best centers in the league. He was strong and athletic, but unlike some of the athletic big men in the league today, Ewing didn’t rely on his strength and explosiveness to score. He had good footwork, a good post-up game, and a reliable mid-range shot. He was also a really good defender too (holds career averages of 2.4 blocks and 1.0 steal per game).
So when the Hall of Fame big man compliments someone, you know it’s legit.
On Wednesday, prior to the Charlotte Hornets beating the Philadelphia 76ers 109-93, Hornets’ Head Coach Steve Clifford was asked by the media if he was “intrigued” to face off against Joel Embiid (he ended up not playing that game due to planned rest).
Clifford said “no” and then went into a story about how Ewing, an assistant Hornet’s coach, reacted when they watched tape on Embiid during the pre-season. Via Philly.com:
“Then Clifford told a story about watching preseason game film of Embiid in his office. Hornets assistant Patrick Ewing, a Hall of Fame center, walked in and said ‘Whoa!’
Ewing told Clifford that Embiid could very well be the most talented center in the league.”
In three games, Embiid is averaging 17.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks in 21 minutes of play per game. But stats by itself won’t truly show how good a player is, so check out this highlights tape of his most recent game to get a better sense of how good he really is:
