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Joel Embiid's training tool of choice: Film of 'regular white people'
There was a lot we couldn’t learn about Joel Embiid over the past two years, as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft found himself sidelined by a troublesome navicular bone in his right foot that seemingly just refused to heal. We couldn’t figure out how he’d fit in alongside fellow highly touted Philadelphia 76ers lottery-pick centers Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor, how well he’d adapt to the speed and physicality of the NBA game after a relatively small sample of competitive basketball in his past, or how his size and athleticism would translate to a modern NBA in which big men need to be able to shoot and defend in space to be able to earn minutes and make a major difference.
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There was one thing we could learn about the Cameroonian 7-footer, though: he’s funny. Like, legitimately funny. And maybe not just athlete funny; like, funny funny.
The 22-year-old center — who will finally make his NBA regular-season debut on Wednesday when the 76ers welcome Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder to Wells Fargo Center — confirmed as much during a recent sitdown with Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins, with whom he shared a rather unconventional training tool he’s used to hone his offensive game:
When Embiid was injured, he did not grant interviews, so he has a lot to say. He speaks with a French accent, in a flowing stream of consciousness, about everything from Cameroon’s educational system to Florida’s topography to Marc Gasol’s jab step. He is engaging, charismatic and funny, but unlike many foreign big men, his humor is intentional. “You know how I learned to shoot?” Embiid says. “I watched white people. Just regular white people. They really put their elbow in and finish up top. You can find videos of them online.”
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I’m not sure that’s quite what the game’s preeminent shot doctors would recommend, but … well, hell, coaches always say film study’s important, don’t they? Who says the specific film matters all that much?
Way to chase your self-improvement bliss, JoJo — and way to do so while replicating that solid form yourself:
Granted, he only shot 9-for-31 on jumpers during the Sixers preseason slate, but we can cut him a little bit of slack. After all, that was his first competitive basketball in more than two years, and surely his head was swimming every time he stepped out on the court. I’d bet he’ll be better able to replicate the lessons he learned from regular white people once he gets some more reps under his belt. And, while we’re betting on things, if anyone can set me up with a bookie willing to take action on Joel Embiid writing a book titled “Lessons I Learned From Regular White People” within the next year, I’d greatly appreciate it. Thanks.
In his sitdown with Jenkins, Embiid also shed some light on his recent request that 76ers public address announcer Matt Cord begin introducing him as “The Process” — a reference to the phrase popularized during the reign of Sam Hinkie, the analytics-focused general manager whose sink-to-the-bottom-in-search-of-stars approach to rebuilding landed him out of a job, but also landed Embiid, Noel, Okafor, Dario Saric and Ben Simmons — prior to Philly’s games this season:
Hinkie was there for Embiid when [his younger brother] Arthur died, sitting in his apartment with [76ers coach Brett] Brown and [ex-Sixer/countrymen and mentor Luc] Mbah a Moute, then flying him to Cameroon for the funeral. He was there last season, when the Sixers nearly upset the Warriors at Wells Fargo Center, and Embiid stomped excitedly around the suite. He is not there anymore, having resigned in April, but Embiid channels Hinkie every time he references The Process, which occurs nearly every time he opens his mouth. “I think a lot about what I went through and how it prepared me to be a better man,” Embiid says. “I really feel like I’m The Process, like The Process is about me.”
(For what it’s worth, Joel, I’m with you
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All that Embiid went through &dmash; leaving his home at age 15 to travel to the U.S. and pursue basketball; getting “pushed around by everybody” and his “ass kicked every day” at Montverde Academy in Florida as he learned the game; finding himself and his game after a transfer to The Rock School, where he earned a scholarship to Kansas; the trials and tribulations of losing his health and his brother — has led him here, to Opening Night, to the chance to prove that he’s truly as transformational a figure as Hinkie, his successor Bryan Colangelo, Brown and Sixers fans everywhere have been hoping. After all this waiting, it feels almost impossible that Embiid can live up to the hype, but Brown — who, after his years in San Antonio with a pretty good big guy named Tim, knows a thing or two about what the real deal looks like — sure sounds like a believer. From Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated:
Brown said Embiid is such a unique scorer that he can’t think of a comparison. The coach also described the rookie as “the crown jewel and centerpiece to our defense.”
“He’s got such a variety of ways to score that I can’t really point at someone and say, ‘He’s really like this,’ in totality. He does pieces of different people,” Brown said.
Including, apparently, a variety of regular caucasians who post how-to-shoot tutorials on YouTube.
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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!
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