Former NBA All-Star Outraged by 76ers Star's ESPN Top 100 Ranking

Kenyon Martin feels 76ers star Joel Embiid should be higher on ESPN's top 100.

Sep 30, 2024; Camden, NJ, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) poses for a photo on media day at the Philadelphia 76ers Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Heading into the 2024-25 season, Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid was once again named one of the top players in the NBA by ESPN. Despite landing near the top of their player rankings, one former All-Star feels the superstar big man should be higher.

In ESPN's top 100 players list, Embiid was slotted in at No. 8. This is a slight dip from last year's rankings, where he was ranked in the top three. Some of the players just ahead of Embiid include LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum.

During a recent episode of his podcast, Gilbert Arenas shared his thoughts on the top 100 list as a whole. Kenyon Martin, father of Sixers forward KJ Martin, ended up sounding off on Embiid's placement. He strongly feels that he should be placed higher after his play last season.

"See here they go again with this BS man...number eight is insane" Martin said. "Going into last season he was third right. And he averaged 34 before he got hurt. Now you drop him five spots? Let's stop this madness man."

As Martin mentioned, Embiid was nothing short of dominant before suffering a knee injury against the Golden State Warriors. His numbers had him in the same breath as greats like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain. Embiid was also on track to become the second player in history to have more points than minutes played for a season.

Injuries limited him last season, but Embiid was still one of the NBA's top stars. In the 39 games he played in, he averaged 34.7 PPG, 11.0 RPG, and 5.6 APG. Embiid also put together strong performances in the postseason despite battling multiple ailments.

Heading into this season, Embiid finds himself with an opportunity to silence his critics. Fresh off winning a gold medal with Team USA, the former MVP is in a prime position to lead the Sixers on a deep playoff run. If he's able to do so, he'll surely climb back up these rankings next time around.