It’s all about trusting the process.
Former 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie followed that plan during his tenure with the team, perhaps to a fault, some might say.
Hinkie and the team selected Embiid with the third overall pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, but injury issues caused him to not play in a regular-season game for his first two years with the team. Hinkie eventually resigned midway through the 2016 season, although he was likely pushed out by the team.
Embiid believes his inability to stay healthy early in his career was a big factor in Hinkie leaving the team, which he discussed in an interview with David Aldridge of NBA.com. The Sixers big man was asked if he still keeps in touch with Hinkie, and he had this to say in response:
“Yeah, we text sometimes,” Embiid said. “We talk to each other sometimes. I mean, that’s the guy that drafted me, and he made sure he put everything in place so I could get healthy. And I got healthy and I got back on the court. And I feel like he basically kind of lost his job because of me, because I missed two years. So I feel like I owe him a lot. Yeah, we talk. We talk sometimes.”
It’s commendable that Embiid would come out and admit he feels that way, but Hinkie knew what he was getting into when he drafted the Duke product, who fell to No. 3 due to his injury history. And while it has taken him awhile to get healthy, Embiid is developing into one of the most dominant centers in the league.
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