PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 30: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on against the ... [+]
Following the Philadelphia 76ers' 97-92 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night—their third straight win and seventh in eight games—star center Joel Embiid made a troubling admission: He isn't enjoying himself as much as he has in past years.
"I have not been having fun like usually," the big man said. "Like I said, just mainly because I'm still trying to figure it out. You know, how to make it work and all that stuff. It goes back to with me being mature, and one of the biggest parts of my game is just having fun. And by having fun, it's talking trash. But that part has kind of been cut.
"So I just need to be myself, and I guess do whatever I want, because when I'm having fun, I dominate. But this year, I don't know. I can probably count on one hand how many times I've done it [hyped up the crowd]. Last year, it was basically a reaction. I love it. You know, they get me going. They understand me. I do understand them. So I need to start doing it again, because that's how I'm gonna dominate."
In the waning seconds of the third quarter Tuesday night, Embiid did saunter out to mid-court and shimmy his shoulders after hitting a circus shot and drawing an and-1, but antics like that have been few and far between this season.
One of the other notable examples came after Embiid gave the Sixers an 11-2 lead over former teammate Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat on Nov. 23, which set the tone for the night. The Sixers wound up opening a 40-plus-point lead before ultimately winning 113-86.
The Sixers displayed their championship upside against the Heat, but both they and Embiid have otherwise been largely inconsistent throughout this 18-7 start.
Embiid is shooting a career-worst 45.8 percent this season and is averaging 5.5 fewer points per game (albeit in 3.3 fewer minutes) compared to last year. He's been one of the primary culprits of the Sixers' late-game execution issues, as evidenced by his league-high eight turnovers during the final five minutes of games within a five-point margin.
Those execution issues flared up again Tuesday, as the Sixers went the final four minutes without a made basket and scored only 14 points in the fourth quarter. They also turned the ball over twice during that span, although Denver failed to capitalize on either opportunity.
Some of Embiid's frustration may stem from his failing to live up to the preseason expectations he set for himself—namely both Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year. He's currently the Sixers' lowest-ranked starter in ESPN.com's newly unveiled real plus-minus, sitting 44th leaguewide (one spot behind teammate Al Horford).
Many of those struggles are tied directly to the Sixers' offseason changes.
By swapping out Butler and JJ Redick with Josh Richardson and Al Horford, Philly went all-in on a defensive-oriented mindset at the expense of shooting. That has empowered opponents to swarm Embiid with double-teams routinely, as they're less afraid of conceding open threes to inconsistent shooters than allowing Embiid to get cooking in one-on-one situations down low. His iffy ball-handling ability when backing opposing bigs down in the post leads to many of his turnovers, which is undoubtedly frustrating.
It appears as though Embiid also may be in his own head, though.
During the preseason, he repeatedly declared his intention not to talk trash this season. That proved to be easier said than done, as his early-season fracas with Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns demonstrated, but Embiid has largely been on his best behavior since.
Embiid specifically referenced the fight with Towns on Tuesday when discussing his change in demeanor.
"Because everybody has been talking, you know," he said. "I'm not trying to be a distraction to the team. The fight [with Towns] happened, and we had good momentum, and from there, we just kinda lost it, and we lost a couple games. So, I'm not trying to be a distraction, but that's just part of my game. And I feel like me losing that part has been kinda, I think it's kind of taken a toll on my game."
The Towns brawl—and subsequent social media trolling—caused Embiid's maturity to come under question. And during Tuesday's episode of Inside the NBA, Hall of Famer Charles Barkley took umbrage with Embiid's shimmy against Denver.
"See, that bothers me," Barkley said. "Because it's unnecessary. It ain't like he was dominating."
"Joel Embiid is the best big man in basketball," co-host Kenny Smith added. "… But you question does he enjoy the fruits of the labor, or the labor? Because the shaking to the crowd, that's what [Barkley] is upset about. He's like, 'Well, you weren't dominating to be shaking to the crowd yet. You should still be locked in because you haven't started dominating yet.
“And so what that means is that you like the fruits more than the labor. So to me, that's what he's talking about. Is the substance meeting the actual sizzle? And right now, this year, the sizzle is more. And he's too good of a player—he's the best player at this position—to be good. He has to be great."
The point of bringing in Horford and bolstering the bench with rotation-caliber players is that the Sixers don't need Embiid to be an MVP-caliber superstar to win on any given night. They can now survive with a B-minus effort in most games and be fine, at least during the regular season.
However, to achieve their goal of winning a championship this season, they will need Embiid to be a two-way tour de force once the playoffs start in mid-April. As each possession takes on more importance, they can't afford unnecessary turnovers caused by overdribbling or poor spacing.
The Sixers' starting lineup has played only 10 games together and has a net rating of plus-13.8, which is more than a point better than the Milwaukee Bucks' league-leading mark (12.7). They may be able to overcome their clunky offensive fit with a swarming, dominant defense and a lethal transition attack.
They'll need Embiid to regain his mojo, though.
The big man will have to walk a thin line to avoid further Towns-esque confrontations or getting baited into flagrant fouls, but mental domination can be just as deflating as physical domination. Embiid is fond of noting how much real estate he has carved out in the heads of Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond and Portland Trail Blazers center Hassan Whiteside, in part because of his ceaseless trash talk.
Finding that balance will be one of Embiid's greatest challenges moving forward. But until he begins enjoying himself again, the Sixers will be one superstar center short of being a legitimate championship contender.
Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Early Bird Rights.
