On the surface, it seems preposterous that a guy who played in just 647 minutes in a KU uniform can crack even the top 50, much less the top 35. But that 647 minute number belies how freaking incredible Joel Embiid was.
In his lone season, Embiid led the nation in Box Plus-Minus, led the Big 12 in defensive box plus-minus, led the Big 12 in rebound percentage, defensive rebound percentage, player efficiency rating, and finished 2nd in blocks, blocks per game, and 2 pt field goal percentage.
But, as we all know from watching him, Joel Embiid was a visual being more than anything else:
Beyond his regular boxscore numbers or his advanced stats, Embiid impressed me by his ability to seemingly learn some new skill each and every game.