Joel Embiid worked out with seven of his teammates last week at the Sixers‘ practice facility in Camden, writes Adam Aaronson of The Philly Voice. Even with the additions of LeBron James and Jaylen BrownEmbiid’s health is expected to be pivotal to the team’s success. He appeared to be slimmed down in a couple of photos that he posted from the sessions.
Speaking to reporters last week, president of basketball operations Mike Gansey discussed Embiid’s current mindset with the season a little more than two months away.
“He’s just been himself, man,” Gansey said. “I mean, I remember when I got the job, I went over there and he’s like, ‘I want to have a great year. I want to play a lot of games and I want to be back to All-NBA Joel.’ He’s talked the talk and now he’s walking the walk. He’s lost some weight, you saw the pictures. He’s been in the gym. He’s been lifting. So he’s doing all the right things and he’s super motivated and we’re very, very excited.”
Besides winning the prolonged battle for James, Philadelphia also added Dean Wade, Anfernee Simons and Ariel Hukporti in free agency. Gansey said he was focused on building an effective bench unit when the free agent process began.
“We kind of have a big five,” he said. “But it’s just exciting just because we have so much talent, but our depth – getting Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade, getting Hukporti, along with (Dominick) Barlow, Labaron (Philon Jr.) in the draft. I’m just really excited to kind of see how it looks, the combinations, the lineups, the versatility we have. And it’s just – when you have the talent, it’s exciting, and trying to figure it out is the hard part.”
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
In a mailbag columnAaronson ranks the Sixers‘ reserves on the basis of expected playing time. He views Wade as a “super sub” who will likely occupy the sixth-man role and move into the starting lineup when needed. Simons’ defensive liabilities may limit his minutes and his ball-handling skills won’t be vital on a team with so many ball-dominant players, but Aaronson states that he might be the best shooter on the team.
Knicks wing Pacome Dadiet will represent Cote d’Ivoire in this month’s FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, according to Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. Askounis notes that Dadiet previously played for France at the junior level in international competitions.
Phil Pressey has announced that he will return as the head coach of the Celtics‘ G League affiliate in Maine, relays Bobby Manning of CLNS Media (Twitter link). Pressey led the team to its fourth straight playoff appearance last season.