Ever since the Sixers drafted Joel Embiid #3 in June, there has been a lot of speculation about how he and Nerlens Noel will fit together. And being as though neither of them has played even 1 regular season game yet, it's really just speculation. Anything could happen with their development. But the reality is that each player was drafted because of what skills they showed in college, and that's really the only precedent we can judge the players on. So I'll try to use that in my little analysis of how they'll fit together.

First up is Joel, because he's a fairly easy player to analyze. He's a post player, and I believe that whether he develops a mid ranged game or not, that'll be his strength. He's got size, wingspan, footwork and quickness (in short stints, albeit) and uses it to create good looks near the rim. After being moved into the starting lineup and dominating, he began getting doubled basically every possession. He has potential to be 1 of the few NBA big's who demand a double that deep into the post regularly, which obviously opens up the floor for his teammates.He's got to begin taking advantage of the doubles he gets, but after a few starts last season he seemed to begin to learn to pass out of the double. So the potential to be 1 of the guys in the NBA who make offense majorly easy for his team is there.

Defensively, he's still a work in progress. He's a shot blocker, and has the body and length to defend basically anyone in the post. It's the other aspects where I think he struggled with in college, pick and roll defense, staying in position, things of that nature. But I am pretty confident that Embiid will learn these aspects of defense. The big selling point for Embiid is potential, but he's a unique case because he wasn't considered a top pick before coming to Kansas. He did what we essentially want to see a prospect do in the NBA, just much sooner. He got so much better as time passed in college, and he'd only been playing basketball for 3 years before going to college. It wouldn''t be surprising to see him enter the NBA and continue his rapid development, as opposed to other prospects, particularly big men, who take longer to develop.

Nerlens Noel, imo is a completely different type of player than Joel. Where Embiid thrives in the post creating offense, Noel isn't much of a creator and surely not a post player. He's 6'11" and only 220 something, wirey and long, but his quickness and ability to get from a to b is almost guard like. I think Noel is more of a slashing big, who'd be best creating his looks from the perimeter and running at the rim where he can convert or make a play for a cutting teammate. Noel was drafted being a 52% ft shooter and never had taken a shot outside of the paint (or a very low amount) in college. But when he got to Orlando Summer League, it seemed like missing an entire year was the best thing for him offensively. He finished the summer leagues shooting almost 80% from the free throw line, which is almost unrealistic improvement. Although he only hit 1 mid ranged shot (that I saw), you've gotta respect the improvement and be excited about what might come, as ft% can be used as an indicator for shooting mechanics and he can only get better right?

Defensively, Noel is pretty unique. He's not a post defender for NBA 5's at all. I learned that watching Alex Len and Mason Plumlee take advantage of him in college. I'm sure Noel has gotten stronger, but that's really not what role he should play at all imo. Some NBA 4's, like Zach Randolph or Julius Randle, would probably man handle Noel in the paint as well. I'm positive that he'll eventually gain the strength to at least play the 4, but he'll never be the strongest big on the court and his weight gain issues are well documented.

That isn't to say Noel isn't an amazing defender. He's tailor made for the zone era of the NBA. His shot blocking instincts are already probably top 5 in the NBA. He should be 1 of the better pick and roll defenders in the NBA in terms of big men, as he's good to cover and create turnovers in that situation. He plays passing lanes, his help defense is always on point. He might get a little block happy at times, but other than that he's as complete a defender as you can ask for and I really see him competing for every DPOY after he gets used to the NBA and works on his strength and conditioning.

In my opinion, Embiid is the Center while Noel is the PF for defensive purposes only, as calling 1 a pf or center on offense really makes no difference and doesn't effect their strengths at all. You call Embiid a Power Forward, fine. His strength will still most likely be in the post. It's trivial. But defensively, Noel projects to be the superior help defender while Embiid projects to be the better post defender.And because of Noel's foot speed and instincts, I'd rather have him defending stretch 4's while Embiid mans the paint. Simply calling Noel a Center and having him camp in front of the paint for blocks isn't using his entire defensive repertoire and essentially limiting his potential.

Offensively, it's as simple as Joel getting the ball in the post and killing the other team until they double. Noel is best off ball, cutting to the rim or hopefully he develops that mid ranged shot since he could be seeing a lot of opportunities to get the open shot from that range. I see him thriving off put backs, and defensive breakdowns where he takes the ball and makes a play (he's a good passer too). From watching Noel in SL, he was almost automatic when he drove straight to the rim. So I can imagine many situations where Embiid is doubled, passes out of the post and Noel is finishing a dunk before the defense can recover.

Welp, that's it. Any thoughts or whatever, leave a comment thanks for reading.