Just like the rest of us, Joel Embiid watched the NBA Draft on Thursday night and had some thoughts. Considering he’s an NBA All-Star and a member of the Philadelphia 76ers, though, his opinions tend to mean more than most.
Embiid tweeted some critiques of the draft itself and some draft analysis, telling ESPN not to compare his injury history to draft pick Michael Porter Jr. But the biggest critique he had implicates the draft’s first overall pick.
On Thursday night, Embiid called out first overall pick Deandre Ayton by tweeting a warning to those who want to compare him to Ayton, saying the difference between the two is that Embiid actually plays “defense.”
Don’t compare Ayton to me either… I play DEFENSE
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) June 22, 2018
It certainly didn’t take Embiid long to chirp the new rookie, though it is simply Embiid defending himself after what was already a bit of a frustrating night. He was probably feeling a big defensive after some on the ESPN broadcast spoke about the fall of Michael Porter Jr. to No. 14 in the draft because of some nagging back injuries.
Porter Jr. said the Denver Nuggets made the “best pick ever” when they took him, but Embiid tweeted after the sequence that he’d rather not be brought up when it comes to Porter’s health.
Keep my name out of this lol
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) June 22, 2018
Embiid is always willing to chime in on league matters, even when it involves his own team president’s burner accounts. So it’s no wonder that he was watching and willing to add some words to the matter. I’m sure Ayton will have something to say about Embiid implying he can’t play defense, though maybe he’ll wait to do his talking when the two face off on the court.
