Excellent as always

This basically captures the essence and difference between these guys and their respective organizations. Eagles wanted a guy who demonstrated he could face adversity, adapt, and win. Mentally strong with a solid work ethic.

Sixers took on a project and have been enabling a man-child for the last 10 years or so. The team is built around a fragile ego. It’s a house of cards that simply cannot succeed and the organization lacks the intelligence or discipline to take corrective measures.

Eagles has a very similar guy in Carson Wentz, and they got wise and moved on from him. Sixers should have done the same two or three years ago.

Les,

I have been a fan of your writing way back in your Daily News days. Loved it when you were on the Flyers beat.

Les, This article is why I look forward to reading your pieces. You synthesized the core of Embiid and Hurts perfectly. Thank you.

Write more Les

Great article that really illustrates how large the role that the mental aspect of an athlete plays in their career.

On the mark, as usual. Well done.

Great piece, Les. Jalen’s mentality and ability/willingness to deal with adversity is impressive, and the Eagles (and fans) are fortunate to have him as the QB and team leader. Embiid seems to be a good and caring man, but also lacks leadership and maturity. Yes, it does help that the Eagles are a more stable and well run organization than the Sixers, but there is certainly more Embiid could do to try and help his team.

Contrasting these two superstars in light of this week’s news was a very smart approach here Les. Your points are poignant and fair. Well done!

Damn not one comment on here about how un-nuanced a line is like “The latter is the mindset of a five-year-old.”

Your barb is petulant. It’s mostly fair writing, but you just couldn’t help that extra self-indulgence. Lame.

Les
Thanks for an insightful article. I was surprised that Dotun Akintoye was able to secure Joel Embiid’s cooperation. Jalen Hurts is a leader with a growth mindset. Joel Embiid is a wealthy, Gen Z man-child with enormous athletic gifts. Having invested in and worked with start-up organizations that succeeded and failed, I can only conclude that over the last 15 years, the Sixers organization has repeatedly made the same talent identification mistakes and never learned from them. Jeff Laurie and Howie Roseman made mistakes (for example, Chip Kelly, Terrell Owens, Carson Wentz, Bryce Huff), but must have added some processes that manage character assesment

Thing is, no matter how one ranks Hurts, you don’t need an elite QB to win the superbowl. It helps, but Ravens won w/ Trent Dilfer and Denver w Peyton Manning at the end as a game manager. Hurts is a very good QB, and he plays well in the biggest games. I dunno how much more you can ask.

Thanks, Les. Always a good read. When I see Embiid on a court and it’s all going right, there are few NBA players that can match his talent and skill. Sadly, it’s rare. His injuries have hobbled his chances to achieve in the playoffs. But you hit the nail on the head about his concern over team meeting secrecy surpassing the need to actually show up on time. I can’t know what it’s been like for him coming here, losing a family member while away from home, but it had to be awful. Wilt once said “Noboby like Goliath” but I don’t think that’s the case here. Fans here want him to be healthy and have a chance to succeed. Here’s hoping he does.

This is nonsensical. The circumstances surrounding each athlete, both life circumstance and circumstance within their respective sport, could not be more different. Lazy comparison at best.

I tend to roll my eyes sometimes when Jalen talks. I think he says things because he thinks he should say them. And, of course, he doesn’t always makes sense. BUT, I do think he has a strong work ethic that has made him into a clutch player.

Embiid’s expiration date in Philly expired a couple of years ago.