Comparing Embiid to NBA's all-time great centres

Joel Embiid's potential has been obvious right from the beginning, dating back to his lone season in college at the University of Kansas, where the 7-footer displayed the kind of elite rim protection and all-around game that NBA general managers gush over.

So while Embiid's talent has never been questioned, there were concerns about his ability to remain healthy. Had he not fractured his foot just prior to the 2014 NBA draft, Embiid who was taken No. 3 overall by the Philadelphia 76ers that year, would have stood a good chance of being the first player selected. Ultimately, his broken foot refused to heal, delaying the start of his NBA career for a couple of seasons.

Finally healthy, Embiid made his long-awaited debut in October of 2016 and has taken the league by storm. 

Toronto Raptors fans got their first glance of Embiid in Toronto's Dec. 14 win over the 76ers, but they really got to see just how good the rookie can be in Wednesday’s 94-89 Philadelphia win over Toronto. Embiid was dominant in the outing pouring in 26 points, grabbing nine rebounds and swatting away a couple of shots.

So far through 29 games this season, Embiid, who has dubbed himself 'The Process' as in the saviour needed to turn around the fortunes of the underachieving 76ers, has averaged 19.9 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.4 blocks while playing on a minutes restriction.Embiid's strong play already has many placing him among the top centres in the NBA, with some even going as far to compare his strong start with those of basketball's all-time great at the position.

With the latter in mind, let's put Embiid's rookie numbers up against some of those of Hall of Famers: David Robinson, Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon; three of the best to ever play the position. Since Embiid is only 29 games into his career at this point, all comparisons will be based on their respective production per 36 minutes. 

Robinson's game was comprised of strong physical play, and while Embiid has elements of this to his game as well, in particular on the defensive end, the youngster can't quite match the level Robinson brought on the offensive side with his thunderous dunks and strong post-ups. Embiid certainly has a face-up game as well, he will often hover above the key where he's more than capable of knocking down a long mid-range jumper.

Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Ewing like Embiid (born in Cameroon) started playing basketball later than most NBA players. Ewing immigrated to the U.S as a 12-year-old. Ewing, now an assistant coach for the Charlotte Hornets, praised Embiid's game after studying him on film, telling the Hornets head coach Steve Clifford that Philadelphia's star big man is the most talented at the position in today’s NBA.

Given their shared African heritage, as well as their similar body types, Embiid has drawn comparison to Olajuwon going back to his days at Kansas. Outstanding athletes given their size, Embiid has been able to replicate better than most, but not quite exactly fully replicate, Olajuwon's signature dream shake move. Olajuwon’s footwork gave him an advantage in his era and it should do the same for Embiid, who's playing in a time where big men are being asked to be more athletic and versatile than ever before. 

Based on the numbers it would appear that Embiid has the potential to be a more a prolific scorer than each of these all-time greats. That may be true, but context is needed. In Philadelphia, Embiid is overwhelmingly the best player on a team full of young players that has not achieved much at all prior to his arrival. In fact, the 76ers have been accused of taking games off for several years now in order to acquire high draft picks. This wasn't the case at all with each of these Hall of Famers, in particular Robinson and Olajuwon whose teams earned playoff spots in their respective rookie campaigns. 

Still, though, stats are a strong indicator of talent. Embiid's numbers at this point in his career have him on pace to one day be declared as one of the best centres of all-time. 

Stats courtesy of basketballreference.com