technical details
  1. is_video => true
  2. alias => "philadelphia\/\/76ers\/sixers-celtics-analyst-joel-embiid-ben-simmons-brian-scalabrine"
  3. nid => "757706"
  4. title => "Celtics analyst: Joel Embiid 'should be the most dominant force we've seen in a long time'"
  5. is_chrome_page => false
  6. article_body => "<p>There\u2019s no denying the huge expectations for the Sixers this season.<\/p>\n<p>And that extends beyond Philadelphia. Nationally, the Sixers are perceived by many to be one of the favorites to reach the NBA Finals.<\/p>\n<p>As a guest on the Sixers Talk podcast, former NBA player and NBC Sports Boston Celtics analyst Brian Scalabrine had high praise for the Sixers. \u201cThe White Mamba\u201d believes&nbsp;they\u2019re the best team in the conference and feature the best starting five in the NBA.<\/p>\n<p>All of that hinges on his belief that Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons are two of the most physically imposing players in the NBA.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>This guy should be the most dominant force we\u2019ve seen in a long time,\u201d Scalabrine said of Embiid. \u201cIf he lost the 25 pounds, if he keeps the 25 pounds off, if he doesn\u2019t eat Oreo cookie shakes on the plane and all that stuff \u2014&nbsp;I don\u2019t see how the NBA handles a guy like Joel Embiid. I just think he\u2019s so dominant of a force. He\u2019s so complete of a player.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>While a lot of the attention with Simmons has been focused on his shot, Scalabrine isn\u2019t as worried about that. Like Embiid, he believes Simmons has the physical tools to&nbsp;take over games.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I\u2019m not concerned about Ben Simmons and his lack of shooting. I look at their dominance athletically and physically and ultimately when everyone knows what you\u2019re going to run, the physical, dominant specimens \u2014&nbsp;the LeBrons, the Kawhi Leonards, the Giannis [Antetokounmpos] \u2014&nbsp;those are the guys that separate themselves in the playoffs.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Scalabrine also touched on what Al Horford will bring to the Sixers, the Celtics\u2019 new approach and much more.<\/p>\n<p>Hosts Danny Pommells and myself also had Sixers forward Mike Scott talking about becoming an \u201cOG\u201d and NBC Sports Philadelphia\u2019s Serena Winters to preview the upcoming season.<\/p>\n<p>You can check out the full pod below.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/art19.com\/shows\/sixers-talk-a-philadelphia-76ers-podcast\/episodes\/01dbba2a-8f8d-4bc9-bf47-0a47f48c052b\/embed\" style=\"width: 100%; height: 200px; border: 0 none;\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe> \n<p><em><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/smart.link\/5bb788a3d5b83?site_id=Web_NBCS_Philly&amp;creative_id=nbcsphi1356&amp;cp_4=www.nbcsports.com&amp;cp_1=washington&amp;cp_2=myteams-nbc-sports&amp;cp_3=nbcsphi1356\">Click here<\/a> to download the MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Flyers, Sixers and Phillies games easily on your device.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">More on the Sixers<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/76ers\/al-horford-sixers-celtics-rivalry-nba-opening-night-brett-brown\">'It's not just another game' for Horford against the Celtics<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/76ers\/joel-embiid-legacy-brett-brown-2019-20-sixers-post-offense\">Will Embiid live in the paint? How Brown wants to help his \u2018unicorn\u2019 build a legacy<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/76ers\/sixers-shooting-brett-brown-tobias-harris-josh-richardson-joel-embiid-mike-scott\">Sixers will hang their hat on defense, but those shooting questions haven\u2019t gone away<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/76ers\/reebok-allen-iverson-shoes-trey-burke\">Reebok is dialing up the nostalgia in latest release with Iverson<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/76ers\/sixers-james-ennis-poverty-nonprofit-donation-achievability\">Sixers' James Ennis makes donation to a cause close to his heart<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n"
  7. author => "Paul Hudrick"
  8. mps => {"author":"Paul Hudrick","league":"","sport":"","sponsor":""}
  9. published => "1571796120"
  10. created => "1571795909"
  11. changed => "1571797786"
  12. status => "1"
  13. hero_image_credit => "USA Today Images"
  14. tags => [{"tid":"3341","name":"Paul Hudrick","url":"tags\/paul-hudrick"},{"tid":"2606","name":"Ben Simmons","url":"tags\/ben-simmons"},{"tid":"2376","name":"Joel Embiid","url":"tags\/joel-embiid"},{"tid":"11586","name":"brian scalabrine","url":"tags\/brian-scalabrine"},{"tid":"30371","name":"Sixers Talk podcast","url":"tags\/sixers-talk-podcast"}]
  15. section => "76ers"
  16. team => "Philadelphia Sixers"
  17. image => {"uri":"public:\/\/archive\/assets_article\/philadelphia\/2019\/10\/23\/hypethumb.jpg","alt":"hypethumb.jpg","title":"'We stole Al' \u2014 Sixers tip off 2019-20 season in rivalry fashion"}
  18. video_url => "https:\/\/www.nbcsports.com\/philadelphia\/video\/we-stole-al-sixers-tip-2019-20-season-rivalry-fashion"
  19. is_mediaid => true
  20. mediaid => "q_M6wekgIuWf"
  21. video_autoplay => true
  22. video_automute => false
  23. mpx_account_id => "BxmELC"
  24. player_id => "philly_article"
  25. chrome_data => "{\"league\":\"\",\"sport\":\"\",\"sponsor\":\"\"}"
  26. sponsor => ""
  27. region => "philadelphia"
  28. fb_url => "https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dialog\/share?app_id=1811037219016879&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcsports.com%2Fphiladelphia%2F76ers%2Fsixers-celtics-analyst-joel-embiid-ben-simmons-brian-scalabrine&display=popup"
  29. tw_url => "https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Celtics%20analyst%3A%20Joel%20Embiid%20%27should%20be%20the%20most%20dominant%20force%20we%27ve%20seen%20in%20a%20long%20time%27&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcsports.com%2Fphiladelphia%2F76ers%2Fsixers-celtics-analyst-joel-embiid-ben-simmons-brian-scalabrine&original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcsports.com%2Fphiladelphia%2F76ers%2Fsixers-celtics-analyst-joel-embiid-ben-simmons-brian-scalabrine"
  30. mailto => "mailto:?subject=Celtics%20analyst%3A%20Joel%20Embiid%20%27should%20be%20the%20most%20dominant%20force%20we%27ve%20seen%20in%20a%20long%20time%27&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcsports.com%2Fphiladelphia%2F76ers%2Fsixers-celtics-analyst-joel-embiid-ben-simmons-brian-scalabrine"
  31. tags_hide => []
  32. type => "article"
  33. meta => {"file":"\/mnt\/gfs\/rsnunited\/sites\/default\/files\/archive\/article\/philadelphia\/76ers\/sixers-celtics-analyst-joel-embiid-ben-simmons-brian-scalabrine.json","assets":["public:\/\/archive\/assets_article\/philadelphia\/2019\/10\/23\/hypethumb.jpg"]}
  34. orig_image => {"uri":"public:\/\/2019\/10\/22\/hypethumb.jpg","alt":"hypethumb.jpg","title":"'We stole Al' \u2014 Sixers tip off 2019-20 season in rivalry fashion"}
  35. article_type => "article"
76ers

76ers

There’s no denying the huge expectations for the Sixers this season.

And that extends beyond Philadelphia. Nationally, the Sixers are perceived by many to be one of the favorites to reach the NBA Finals.

As a guest on the Sixers Talk podcast, former NBA player and NBC Sports Boston Celtics analyst Brian Scalabrine had high praise for the Sixers. “The White Mamba” believes they’re the best team in the conference and feature the best starting five in the NBA.

All of that hinges on his belief that Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons are two of the most physically imposing players in the NBA.

This guy should be the most dominant force we’ve seen in a long time,” Scalabrine said of Embiid. “If he lost the 25 pounds, if he keeps the 25 pounds off, if he doesn’t eat Oreo cookie shakes on the plane and all that stuff — I don’t see how the NBA handles a guy like Joel Embiid. I just think he’s so dominant of a force. He’s so complete of a player.

While a lot of the attention with Simmons has been focused on his shot, Scalabrine isn’t as worried about that. Like Embiid, he believes Simmons has the physical tools to take over games.

I’m not concerned about Ben Simmons and his lack of shooting. I look at their dominance athletically and physically and ultimately when everyone knows what you’re going to run, the physical, dominant specimens — the LeBrons, the Kawhi Leonards, the Giannis [Antetokounmpos] — those are the guys that separate themselves in the playoffs.

 

Scalabrine also touched on what Al Horford will bring to the Sixers, the Celtics’ new approach and much more.

Hosts Danny Pommells and myself also had Sixers forward Mike Scott talking about becoming an “OG” and NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Serena Winters to preview the upcoming season.

You can check out the full pod below.

Click here to download the MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Flyers, Sixers and Phillies games easily on your device.

More on the Sixers