Joel Embiid

Joel Hans Embiid ( joh-EL em-BEED; born 16 March 1994) is a Cameroonian and American professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After one year of college basketball with the Kansas Jayhawks, he was drafted third overall by the 76ers in the 2014 NBA draft. The 7-foot (2.13 m) center is a seven-time NBA All-Star, a five-time member of the All-NBA Team, a three-time member of the All-Defensive Team, and a two-time NBA scoring champion. He was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2023. Embiid also won a gold medal on the 2024 U.S. Olympic team.

Embiid enrolled at Montverde Academy, Mbah a Moute's alma mater, but transferred after his first year due to a lack of playing time. He then attended The Rock School, a Christian academy, in Gainesville, Florida. As a senior, he led their team to a 33–4 record and state championship, averaging 13.0 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game.

Embiid attended the University of Kansas for one year alongside notable teammate Andrew Wiggins. On 13 February 2014, he was named one of the 30 finalists for the Naismith College Player of the Year. In 2013–14, he played 28 games, averaging 11.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.6 blocks in 23.1 minutes per game. He had over 15 points in seven games and over 5 blocks in six games. He subsequently earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors and was named second-team All-Big 12.

Embiid suffered a stress fracture in his back in March 2014. He missed that year's Big 12 tournament and NCAA tournament. Kansas lost in the second round (round of 32) of the NCAA tournament.

Source: Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License