Is Joel Embiid still a dominant two-way player? Or has he become a liability on the defensive end as he (understandably) prioritizes his health and doesn't go full blast as a rim protector anymore? Or is the truth somewhere in the middle?
Bill Simmons of The Ringer was blunt in his assessement of Embiid's interior defense. "He doesn't protect the rim anymore... The rim protection stats with him were terrible last year," Simmons said about the 2023-24 NBA MVP.
And on first look, Simmons is onto something. Yes, Embiid's block numbers were way down to a career-low 0.