Patrick Causey, on Twitter @PhillySportsJD
Coaches talk to each other. They can be candid with one another in a way that they cannot be with the media. There is a level of trust there. It's a fraternity. They know that what they say won't get twisted or held against them in the media.
Which is why I always tune in when a coach comes onto sports radio to discuss topics relevant to Philadelphia sports teams. You never know what kind of nugget you are going to get.
Last night I was listening to Joe DeCamara on 97.5 The Fanatic, as he interviewed St. Joe's Mens Basketball Coach Phil Martelli about the upcoming draft. And while the entire segment was great — Martelli thinks Anthony-Towns and Russell are the two superstars in this class and compared Okafor to Zac Randolph — it was his comments about last year's draft that was most telling.
Martelli recalled a conversation with Kansas coach Bill Self about the top prospects in the 2014 NBA Draft. According to Martelli, Self said Joel Embiid was the best prospect in the entire draft, and it wasn't even close.
Self, of course, also coached number one overall pick and NBA Rookie of the Year, Andrew Wiggins. So this isn't simply a case of a coach touting his own guy. Self saw Wiggins and Embiid first hand, and came away with the belief that Embiid was a considerably better player.
Embiid's talent was never in question. His ability to stay healthy, however, is. The Sixers were only able to draft Embiid because of his considerable injury history. He suffered a broken back that cut his lone season at Kansas short. As he was recovering from that injury, he suffered a fracture in his foot leading up to the draft. Had he not been injured, he likely would have been selected number one overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
If he can stay healthy, Embiid figures to be a franchise caliber talent. And according to at least his former coach, the best talent in the entire 2014 class.
