Kendrick Perkins gives Joel Embiid the ultimate compliment, calls him a hybrid of Hakeem Olajuwon and Kevin Durant.
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Joel Embiid‘s surge this season as the best player in the NBA has been one of the best things to witness. Not at all bothered by the recently settled Ben Simmons‘ trade drama, Embiid has evolved as a top-3 contender for the 2022 MVP race until now.
It’s not just Embiid who has upped his game this season. Many players are playing some of the best basketball of their career, including reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, the 2x MVPs Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and DeMar DeRozan.
But the Philly Big Man always extends the gap between himself and the rest whenever someone closes in on him. He’s averaging 29.3 points, 11.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.4 blocks, and a steal per game.
“So imagine a seven-foot one, Hakeem Olajuwon, they’re different in some ways, but both were two-way players, both were extraordinarily impactful defensively, both were extraordinarily skilled offensively, with amazing footwork.” Daryl Morey, on a recent episode of Colin Cowherd Podcast, said of Joel Embiid, when asked, how would he describe his team’s big man to a scout.
It’s not just Sixers President, many other people have given the 5-time All-Star his due respect around the league this season, including Steve Kerr, Charles Barkley, Stephen Curry, and so on. Kendrick Perkins chipped in recently who also compared him to Hakeem in his own way.
“If Hakeem Olajuwon and Kevin Durant had a baby, it would be Joel Embiid”: Kendrick Perkins
Add the former Celtics big man and ESPN analyst, Kendrick Perkins, to the list of players who have been amazed by what Embiid is doing this season. After his 42-points, 14-rebounds, 5-assists against the 2021 Finals MVP and his champion team, Perkins hilariously called Joel a mix of Kevin Durant and Hakeem Olajuwon.
His dominance on both ends of the court along with significantly improved play-making skills certainly makes him the hybrid of the greats Perkins mentioned him with.
Not only is he averaging his career-best in points per game (29.6), his career highs in assists (4.5) and 3-points made per game while shooting 37% from the field, has made him a juggernaut almost impossible to guard, much like the Slim Reaper and the Dream.
Embiid is playing such great basketball while being the only player in Philly drawing double teams throughout this campaign. He still has to play with his new teammate James Harden, who will be often drawing double teams on the perimeter.
They will be one of the scariest opponents in the playoffs for any team if the two stars gel well together.
