There are a few guys who have a legitimate argument for the title of best center in the NBA. On Wednesday night, Joel Embiid might have shown that when he’s 100 percent locked in and healthy, he has the ability to lap the entire field. That’s not an indictment on the rest of the league, he’s just really, insanely good.
Embiid was magnificent during Philadelphia’s 115-109 win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night. The thing was, the Sixers losing wouldn’t have mattered, because this was one of those rare games where the score did not matter all that much — it was a game in November between two teams that are still building towards winning a title in the future.
Instead, what stood out above everything else was Embiid’s performance. He threw down a 46-point, 15-rebound, seven-assist, seven-block stat line on Los Angeles’ frontcourt. Embiid managed to do all of this in 34 minutes on the floor. Also, this was the first time that stat line has ever happened in the league’s recorded history.
https://twitter.com/tim_cato/status/931039440914534400
There are a number of highlights from the game, but few were as impressive as this insane Dream Shake.
Joel Embiid is putting on a SHOW on ESPN!
44 PTS / 14 REB / 7 AST / 7 BLK pic.twitter.com/AdQY8OOstg
— NBA (@NBA) November 16, 2017
Embiid showed off his entire offensive repertoire. There were low post moves, there were jump shots, there were three pointers, and there were times when he got the ball and went “I’m going to get fouled now.” He also busted out a Eurostep, because sure.
My goodness. https://t.co/j2IyOSPHTQ
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 16, 2017
It was the kind of performance that Philly hasn’t seen in some time. In fact, the last time a big man dropped at least 40 points in a game was during the George H.W. Bush administration.
Career-high 42 for Embiid. The last #sixers big man to score 40 was Charles Barkley in 1991.
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) November 16, 2017
After the game, Embiid got interviewed, but the segment was interrupted because Kevin Hart could not resist hopping on air and starting a “Trust the Process” chant. Obviously, Embiid got in.
https://twitter.com/nickpiccone/status/931039728446705664
As for the interview itself, he gave an update on his conditioning, which included a not-so-subtle nod to Twitter.
lmaoooo this guy pic.twitter.com/dT814eX3i5
— sreekar (@sreekyshooter) November 16, 2017
Luke Walton, meanwhile, was left with the unenviable task of describing that he just saw out of a guy who has played 43 games in his NBA career.
Luke Walton with the understatement of the century on Joel Embiid: “He’s a problem.”
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) November 16, 2017
When you ask Sixers fans why they went through all the losing of the last few years, nights like this are why. The Process was all about trying to build a team that can win a championship, and as he showed tonight, Embiid is the type of guy who can put up insane stat lines and carry the team.
