Now one of the most prominent and dominating inside-outside forces in the NBA, it wasn’t long ago that Joel Embiid’s three-point stroke was highlighted as one of the few weaknesses in his game.
Entering his third NBA season, Embiid has turned to his perimeter game now more than ever, as he took 3.4 attempts from deep last season and connected on nearly 31 percent of them. Since the seven-footer didn’t even pick up basketball until high school, the way Embiid learned the game is vastly different from the majority of other NBA players. In a recent piece for the Players Tribune, Embiid details how he went from a raw, physically-imposing specimen to a skilled center fully capable of stretching beyond the arc.
So I’m chilling one night, and I go on YouTube, and I’m thinking I’m about to figure this shooting thing out.
I go to the search box like…
HOW TO SHOOT 3 POINTERS.
Nah.
HOW TO SHOOT GOOD FORM
Nah.
Then the light bulb went off, man. I typed in the magic words.
WHITE PEOPLE SHOOTING 3 POINTERS.
Listen, I know it’s a stereotype, but have you ever seen a normal, 30-year-old white guy shoot a three-pointer? That elbow is tucked, man. The knees are bent. The follow-through is perfect. Always. You know how in America, there’s always an older guy wearing like EVERLAST sweat-shorts at the court? That guy is always a problem. His J is always wet.
Those are the guys I learned from on YouTube. Just random people shooting threes with perfect form.
Now with a wave of versatile, young big men being ushered in, it took hard work and dedication from Joel Embiid to be at the forefront of that movement. Once a basketball novice, Embiid has turned himself into one of the NBA’s most dominant centers in a span of only a few years.
Embiid added in that same piece that he pondered quitting basketball for good at one point, but found the motivation to master the sport he is now flourishing in. Embiid will look to keep his shooting stroke sharp in hopes of helping the Sixers make a deep playoff run this season.
