Steve Kerr on Joel Embiid.. pic.twitter.com/ufbDy6ifBh
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) November 18, 2017
Joel Embiid is “The Process” in human form.
So as the Philadelphia 76ers take a gigantic step forward, it’s no surprise that Embiid is leading the way. Whether on the court or off of it, Embiid cowers at the sight of no one, and since losing a blowout last week against the Golden State Warriors, the former No. 3 overall draft pick has taken his game to another level.
“He looks a lot different than he did a week ago, something happened, I don’t know,” Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr said. “That Laker game was scary.”
The “Laker game” Kerr is referring to was a ridiculous 46-point, 15-rebound, seven-block game for Embiid as he and the 76ers earned a six-point win over Lonzo Ball and Los Angeles. That performance came on the heels of a 32-point outing in a win over the Clippers, which represented another step in the right direction for Philadelphia and it’s energetic big man.
On Saturday evening, the Warriors will meet the 76ers for the second time in as many weeks, and though Embiid didn’t perform at a high level in the Warriors’ victory last week, Kerr does not plan to take Embiid lightly.
“You have to be active on him,” Kerr said. “We were pretty active on him last week and had some success but we know that that doesn’t guarantee anything tonight. You know, he’s learning every single day, every single game so he’s starting to see things and recognize patterns and his confidence I’m sure is sky-high right now after that game in LA. We’ll try to be active on him and put a lot of different people on him and double teams and all of that but he’s a handful.”