Joel Embiid to sign 5-year, $148 million contract with 76ers after playing 31 games
Embiid would have won Rookie of the Year by a landslide had he stayed on the court.
Standout rookie center Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers agreed to a designated rookie scale max extension of five years worth $148 million, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Embiid’s injuries have limited him to just 31 games over three NBA seasons.
Embiid’s contract is guaranteed for 50 percent of the $148 million, according to The Vertical’s Shams Charania, with a super max trigger, likely if he reaches a certain number of games played each season.
The mercurial Sixers big man was an adrenaline shot to a struggling Philadelphia franchise, averaging 20 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.5 blocks on 36.7 percent three-point shooting. He led the 76ers to a 28-54 record, their highest win total since the 2012-13 season.
But the deal is still a gamble for Philadelphia
The 76ers took Embiid No. 3 overall in 2014 after he suffered a stress fracture in his right foot that required surgery. As a precautionary measure, Philadelphia sat him the entire 2014-15 season. But Embiid re-broke the same bone in his right foot the following offseason, which prompted 76ers management to sideline him for a second straight season.
The dominant, two-way big man didn’t make his NBA debut until last season, but even with his game-changing play — blocking shots and finger-wagging on one end before draining threes and scoring in the low block on the other — injuries still remained a concern. Embiid’s official rookie season was cut short after Philly’s medical staff discovered a torn meniscus in his knee after the All-Star break.
Embiid’s talent is not the question. The 76ers’ center has become an outlier in a league that has trended away from traditional big men. But in handing their injury-riddled big man a massive contract — partial guarantees and all — Philadelphia is doubling down on Embiid’s availability for years to come.
That’s why his extension, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, has been described as “perhaps the most complex” NBA contract ever: because the 76ers will hit a home run if he stays healthy, but they’ll strike out if he can’t play.
Here’s to hoping we see more Joel Embiid in the future.