Joel Embiid's lack of time on the floor plays a major role in this conversation, but there may be a silver lining in all of this.
When a team pays a player, it’s all about the production said player has given the team. For the Philadelphia 76ers, paying Joel Embiid sounded like a no-brainer at the time.
Embiid signed an extension worth $196 million with the team back in 2021. Then, in 2023, when Embiid won the MVP, he signed a supermax extension worth 196 million that kept him on the books through the 2028-2029 season.
Since that contract was signed, Embiid has only appeared in 57 games for the franchise. Which is why Embiid landed on the NBA’s All-Overpaid Team created by Bleacher Report. It’s actually a fair assessment to have Embiid on this team, as he’s been unavailable. But at the same time, at the time of the signing, it seemed like a no-brainer.
Embiid had won the scoring title twice and had won an MVP as well. But what exactly goes into being overpaid? Availability is Embiid’s only true issue. When he is on the court, his impact is immense. If anyone wants to complain and argue about whether he can still have some production, take a look at what Embiid did with two bad knees for the Olympics. Besides, even though Embiid missed 48 games last season, he willed his team past the Boston Celtics, and he had recently had his appendix removed.
Unfortunately after that series, Embiid was tapped out and lost to the eventual champion, the New York Knicks. Even in those 57 games he played in, he still managed to average 25.8 points during that timeframe. So, it was never the production. But it may be a little early for the title of overpaid because he still has three years left, including this season.
With a contract like Embiid’s, it's easy to say it was a bad deal, especially since the deal takes up over 35 percent of the salary cap. It’s safe to say Embiid will only need to appear in 60 games to make it worthwhile, but he’ll be needed desperately when they get to the playoffs. So the amount of games won't matter if he shows up when it matters the most.
If the argument of overpaid is solely his availability, then it’s taken with a grain of salt. Embiid will always have an impact on the game; it's just a matter of when he shows up in said games that will prove the difference.
