76ers C Joel Embiid has agreed to a five-year, $148M designated rookie scale maximum contract extension, a deal that "represents the 76ers' commitment to Embiid's talent, given that he has been healthy enough to play in only 31 regular-season games" since he was taken third overall in '14, according to sources cited by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com. Sources said that Embiid has the "ability to earn" an additional $30M -- bringing the value of the contract to as much as $178M -- if he "earns an All-NBA first-, second- or third-team selection, or is named MVP this season." The deal will "include some salary-cap protection for the 76ers should Embiid suffer injury that causes him to miss significant playing time." Wojnarowski noted the extension "solidifies Embiid as a cornerstone of the franchise's future" (ESPN.com, 10/9). In Philadelphia, Keith Pompey notes Embiid "still hasn’t played in a game after having what the Sixers called 'minor' surgery more than six months ago to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee." However, he is the "most important part of turning 'The Process' into what the Sixers hope is a championship team." Without Embiid, the team will have to "rethink everything about the plan they’ve been working on for the last few years" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 10/10).
TRUSTING THEIR THOUGHT PROCESS: In Philadelphia, David Murphy writes Embiid's contract extension "might be unprecedented, but the player has a chance to be unprecedented as well." It might seem "silly to think that a guy who can’t stay healthy in his early 20s is going to age well enough to warrant the kind of salary-cap space that the Sixers will be devoting to Embiid." But when the player in question has a "once-in-a-generation combination of body type and skill, when he has the potential to make you a contender in whatever minutes he does log, then not signing him comes with considerable risks as well." The 76ers have "saddled themselves with a considerable amount of risk." Whatever the injury protections built into the contract are, the team will "still end up wagering a considerable amount of future payroll flexibility that Embiid can stay healthy enough for his prodigious talent to matter." Murphy: "In Embiid, they have in their possession that rarest of players. It would’ve seemed at odds with the mission to risk letting him walk away" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 10/10). THE RINGER's Haley O'Shaughnessy wrote, "When he’s on the court, the center looks like a star. That’s what the 76ers are, quite literally, banking on" (THERINGER.com, 10/9).
TIMING IS EVERYTHING: In DC, Tim Bontemps writes regardless of guaranteed money, this is a "massive investment in a guy who, to this point, has barely been on an NBA court." The timing is also "peculiar." The 76ers could have "waited to see how this season went, then made a decision based on how Embiid’s body held up." There was "never going to be a question about whether Embiid was worthy of a max contract; the only issue was going to be whether he could stay healthy enough to warrant one" (WASHINGTON POST, 10/10). NBC SPORTS PHILADELPHIA's Jessica Camerato wrote Embiid's "talent outweighs the uncertainties." What the 76ers "do know is they are a completely different team with Embiid on the floor." By agreeing to the deal this early, they "removed any distractions of an impending contract situation" (NBCSPORTS.com, 10/9).
