Carmelo Anthony is a Joel Embiid fan.
"I'm glad to see him back out there playing. It's been a while," Anthony said at the Knicks' shootaround Wednesday morning before their game against the Sixers at the Wells Fargo Center. "There's been so much speculation about him."
Finally, the speculation about Embiid's health has been replaced by how far he can take this team. Especially once Ben Simmons returns.
"To see him out there, to see him healthy — what's the saying, trust the process? To see him trusting the process and the Philadelphia organization and the fans as a whole," the 32-year-old Anthony said, "for me as a fan, it's good to see him back out there. We need young guys like that as a part of this league."
Losers of eight of their last nine (see game notes), Anthony and the slumping Knicks are 17-21 and in third place in the Atlantic Division, one spot ahead of the 10-25 Sixers, who have won three of their last four. They didn't win their 10th game last season until April 5 (much more on that here).
"They're going to come in with a lot of confidence," Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek said. "Embiid's a big factor in there with his size, his abilities to clog the lane defensively, and then offensively to make you do things that you have to to keep him out of the paint. He's long — he's going to finish in there. They're getting better. They're a team — you can't just show up and win."
Not anymore, thankfully.