If Nikola Jokic made this Joel Embiid pass, ESPN would have built him a shrine

If Nikola Jokic made the pass Joel Embiid made against the Raptors, you would not have a single second of peace today.

It would be running on loop from your fridge screen to your smart toaster. People would be calling it a religious experience. Zach Lowe would be doing a telestrator breakdown with harps playing in the background.

Instead, Joel Embiid does it, and it is treated like a casual footnote.

Tyrese Maxey dropped 31. Embiid put up 29 points in 26 minutes. Vintage. Efficient. In control. First time in a while he really looked like himself, and he cooked without breaking a sweat. Trendon Watford went full demon with a 20, 17, 10 triple double.

The Sixers scored 130, snapped the Raptors curse, and Embiid uncorked one of the wildest reads you will see from a big all season.

If you somehow missed it, fix that.

Joel Embiid overhead feed to Justin Edwards for three

Side Note: I am one to dabble into conspiracy theories so check this out. I went to embed the official NBA tweet of this pass from Joel Embiid and the video wouldn’t play. I had to rip the video and post directly. The NBA Deep State is Real.

Coincidence? Probably not… THTP

Joel catches at the nail. Help comes from behind. Defender in front. Two bodies blocking the angle. He still slings an overhead touch pass over both heads, on time and on target, right into the corner pocket and Justin Edwards buried the three.

That is not luck. That is processing speed, touch, vision, and confidence from a 7-foot cheat code. If Jokic does it, we get a 48 hour thinkpiece cycle. Since it is Embiid, people barely acknowledge it between screaming about one bad fourth quarter in Chicago.

They Hate The Process… if you’ve been paying attention, you already know.

The Sixers are a significantly better basketball team when Joel Embiid is on the floor.

This is the simple truth that fake-hoopers have issues processing (pun intended).

The offense has structure. The defense has presence. Maxey gets cleaner looks and still goes nuclear. Watford can operate as a point forward without having to pretend he is the best player on the court. Andre Drummond, on a back to back, gives you 17 and 12 with real rim protection and actual competency.

That is exactly why he is here. Starter level minutes from your backup five is the difference between surviving schedule losses and spiraling.

Joel Embiid has been locked in all year.

Even on nights he sits. He is trolling. He is talking. He is engaged. He is taking fines for DX celebrations. He is hyping up teammates. He looks like a guy who understands what the window is and what is expected of him.

Do the haters care about any of that? Of course not. They will foam at the mouth over one meltdown, one layoff, one narrative they have preloaded. That is fine. Everybody with eyes knows the deal. Respect comes in May and June.

Until then, plays like that pass deserve more than silence. If it would be immortalized for Jokic, it should at least get a damn replay for Embiid.

Join The Chase