Joel Embiid Snubbed For Eastern Conference Player Of The Month
In the month of December, Joel Embiid averaged 40.2 points, 12.6 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 2.1 blocks, and 1.4 steals per game. He was the 2nd player to ever average 40 points and 10 rebounds over a full season. Wilt Chamberlian is the only other person to do that. And he is the first player to ever average 40 and 10 while shooting over 60% from the field. Oh, and they were 8-1 in games he played.
All of that would make you think it was a lock for him to win Eastern Conference Player of the Month. Apparently not. The Eastern and Western Conference Players of The Month have been named, and it is Giannis Antetokounmpo, not Joel Embiid, taking home the hardware.
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Giannis had a fantastic month. Not taking anything away from him. But what?
So Embiid does something no one has ever done in NBA history, and does it while sitting out most 4th quarters because his team was so far ahead, and he is not the player of the month? What because he missed a few games? Giannis played just 4 more games than Embiid did.
No one was more dominant than Embiid in the month of December. Pretending him injuring his ankle changes that is just silly. But the NBA isn’t always known for being reasonable.
Joel Embiid is having one of the best seasons in NBA history through the first 30 or so games. He is on track to win his third straight scoring title and win his 2nd MVP. In December, he took his game to another level. What he did will likely not be replicated by any other player for a long time. But if the NBA wants to make these awards about attendance, that is on the, I for one would rather celebrate historic greatness, which is exactly what Embiid accomplished.
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The All-Time Roster Of NBA Players From Philadelphia
PG- Earl Monroe- Philadelphia, Pa
(Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)
Earl “The Pearl” Monroe has quite the NBA resume. Hall of Famer, 4-time All-Star, NBA Champion, a member of the 75th Anniversary Team, and Rookie of the Year, just to name a few of his accolades. He was more of a shooting guard, but you are not going to supplant the next guy as the team’s shooting guard. Instead, he moves over to Point Guard. Is he the ideal facilitator? No. But this team won’t exactly need that with the players they have. So instead you just get another elite scorer onto the court
SG- Kobe Bryant- Philadelphia, Pa
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
When you think of Basketball players from Philly, you think of Kobe. He is one of the most prolific scorers in NBA history, and led his team to 5 NBA Finals wins. From coming up playing at Lower Merion, to dominating an entire era of the NBA, Kobe is a legend. He may have played his pro basketball in LA, but he will always be part of Philly too. As evident by how he celebrated the Eagles’ first Super Bowl.
PF- Rasheed Wallace- Philadelphia, Pa
(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
We have lots of scoring on this team, so it’s time to also add some great defensive players. Wallace had a Defensive Rating of just over 100 in his career. Rudy Gobert had the lowest Defensive rating in the NBA last year at 103. It’s a different era with more scoring, but it goes to show the caliber of defense Wallace brought to the table. He was no slouch on offense either. He is the only player on this starting 5 that is not yet in the Hall of Fame. But he does have a decent case. And even if he never does make it, he is still a fantastic player and among the best Power Forwards of his era.
Bench- Richard “Rip” Hamilton- Coatsville, Pa
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Rasheed was not the only Philly representation on the Pistons team that won it all in 2004. Because Coatsville native Rip Hamilton was there too. For this team, he would bring scoring and shooting off the bench. Rip led all scorers for that Pistons team in the playoffs in 2004.
Bench- Kyle Lowry- Philadelphia, Pa
(Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
We already talked about Kyle Lowry when we did the All-Time roster for active guys from the area. The difference is in this case you get Lowry in his prime. Lowry has made 6 All-Star teams, 1 All-NBA team, and won it all with the Raptors in 2019. Not a bad guy to have coming off of your bench.
Bench- Mikal Bridges- Philadelphia, Pa
(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Like with Lowry, we already talked about Bridges when we made the active team of guys from the area. He would bring All-NBA Caliber defense, and some scoring, off the bench. He was the star for the active team, but on a team of Hall of Famers here, he would be one hell of a role player.
Bench- Jameer Nelson- Chester, Pa
(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
We can’t talk Philly basketball and leave out St. Joe’s Jameer Nelson. In 2004 Nelson helped lead St Joes to the Elite 8 for the first time since 1981. He has a very strong case for being the best player in the school’s history. He went on to have a solid NBA career too, mostly playing with the Magic. He is not a Super Star or Hall of Famer like other guys on this list. But he is more than deserving of a place on the All-Time Philly team.
Bench- Aaron Mckie- Philadelphia, Pa
(Photo by Tom Pidgeon/Getty Images)
You can’t make one of these lists and leave McKie off. Mckie may not have had as prolific of an NBA career as the rest of this team. But he was a solid player and won 6th Man of the Year. He was also a star while at Temple alongside Eddie Jones. And he has been around Philadelphia basketball longer than anyone else here. He played in College here, coached in College here, played in the pros, and coached in the pros here. How many other guys can say they did that in any Basketball city? That is deserving of the 11th roster spot.
