Coming out of college, Joel Embiid was renowned by scouts as a near-complete prospect. With graceful footwork and a vast array of dizzying post moves, the former third overall pick earned comparisons to the likes of Hakeem Olajuwon and Shaquille O’Neal. Outside of Embiid’s salivating strengths, though, scouts pointed to one glaring (non-injury-related) weakness: passing.
In the collegiate ranks, swarming the big man with double teams from the short corner was a reliable avenue to force Embiid into a turnover. Relatively new to the sport, Embiid was over-stimulated by the constant movement of cutters and defenders (Embiid was one of just five players to have a turnover percentage of 21.