Hakeem Olajuwon prefers Nikola Jokic over Joel Embiid, but his 3-point criticism misses the mark
Embiid is making over 43 percent of his triples since December and shot 37 percent last season
By
Brad Botkin
•
3 min read
In a terrific story that is really worth your time, Sports Illustrated's Chris Ballard recently examined the death of NBA post-up play through the eyes of one of the greatest big men to ever live, Hakeem Olajuwon. Again, it's a fantastic piece. Check it out here.
The basics of the story are long and well-chronicled. Spacing rules. Three is worth more than two. As such, NBA big men who can only exist close to the basket have gone extinct. That said, we still have dominant post players. They just don't operate exclusively on the block.
The two that come to mind for everyone are Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid. These two aren't as accomplished as Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, but Jokic and Embiid have become the hottest "who's better?" debate going. The popular vote has pretty heavily leaned toward Jokic in recent years, and indeed Olajuwon sees the Joker as the torchbearer for a post-up era gone by.
From Ballard:
"He doesn't look strong, but I see he gets such deep post position," Olajuwon said of Jokic. "I think maybe it's the mismatch, but then he does the same thing against bigger guys. His shot, his fakes, they are very difficult to time. You don't know when he's faking and when it's real. He has tricks!"
Olajuwon nods. "He's the one."
Now, what did Olajuwon have to say about Embiid?
Olajuwon likes [Embiid] and has given him advice, but he has questions. "He's got all the moves, but leveraging the moves is different. Why would he be shooting threes?" Olajuwon asks. "He has the advantage every night, and if I have the advantage, I'm going to wear you out."
But threes? "That's settling! When I'm tired, I settle. You don't settle when you're trying to win. You don't start the game settling!"
So here's where we have to bring the Dream back to reality. For starters. Embiid isn't some bricklayer who has no business behind the arc; since the start of December, he's made over 43 percent of his 3s. Furthermore, he took fewer 3s last season than Jokic, both in total and on a per-game basis, yet made them at a four-percent higher clip.
2021-22 SEASON | 3PA | 3P% |
288 | 33.7 | |
251 | 37.1 |
Embiid also shot 37 percent from deep in 2019-20. Now, to be fair, Jokic is shooting at a higher clip so far this season (37 percent to Embiid's 35), and he's taking one fewer 3 per game than Embiid. Conversely, Jokic leads the league in post-ups per game (9.4 to Embiid's 6.2, although not all of Jokic's posts are designed to score). These are the numbers that support the spirit of Olajuwon's message. If you're a big boy, play like a big boy.
We all have to admit, there is more of a "settling" feel to Embiid shooting 3-pointers than there is with Jokic. Why? Because Jokic, in essence, acts as a point guard in Denver's offense and seeing the floor from a distance is positionally necessary. His shooting 3s becomes more about the space he inherently occupies when he's murdering you as a playmaker, whereas Embiid standing beyond the arc takes him away from the spots from which he's a licensed killer.
Ultimately, it feels like defenses want Embiid to take 3s, which equates to settling. But I assure you, defenses want Jokic taking 3s rather than dicing them up a thousand different ways, too, and the bottom line is he has obliged over the years just as much as Embiid, who is only going to cramp the space required for James Harden to work in pick and roll and Tyrese Maxey to attack the basket if he's banging down low all game.
Everything in basketball is about opportunity cost. Fifteen to 20 Embiid post-ups per game is too spendy for the Sixers. So he takes a few 3s here and there. If he's making them at the clip he's been going, there's not much even Hakeem Olajuwon can say.
