Jared McCain says Joel Embiid surprised him when he first met him, people get his 76ers teammate wrong

McCain says Joel Embiid is misunderstood

Joel Embiid had a very difficult time dealing with injuries and off the court issues last year.

He played in only 19 games and had an incident with a journalist that even led to suspension from the league.

While it may look like things would be difficult in the locker room with Embiid after all that happened last season, McCain opened up on how misunderstood the seven-time All-Star is in a recent interview.

He said: “I think, coming in as a rookie, you never know with these superstars how they’re going to be, how they’re going to react to especially me, seeing my social media, a lot of people have that first impression that is not always the best when I meet people.

“But for him, it was just he was way more chill than I thought it was going to be, and that’s when I first met him.

“I think seeing him throughout the season, seeing what the media says, and then actually talking to him in person, it’s like he’s just misunderstood in a lot of ways.”

“For me, he was a great mentor, I talked to him a lot when I was on the bench, when I was injured and not playing as much or at all, just talking to him on the bench, he’s just a good person.”

McCain says Joel Embiid leads differently

Although injuries have troubled Embiid throughout his career, he has been brilliant for the 76ers when fit.

Recently, Udonis Haslem picked Embiid over three-time MVP Nikola Jokic when available and at their best.

Embiid was shut down even before the regular season ended and had a successful surgery.

His teammate Tyrese Maxey shared that he was excited to be back playing with Embiid as he is expected to be back next season.

The return date is yet to be confirmed, but it will be exciting to see what Embiid will contribute.

As a leader of the franchise, Embiid is not the most vocal star; he leads by practicing hard, and McCain believes that lifts the entire team.

“You know, sometimes it’s vocal, sometimes it’s just by his actions, you can tell when he walks into the gym, you know, certain energy, it shifts,” McCain said.

“People want to impress him, you want to see what he’s like. When he steps on that court, it brings the whole level of practice, the whole level of the game, up into a different level, and I think that’s the best part about him.”