{"id":574577,"date":"2026-02-01T06:43:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T06:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/574577\/"},"modified":"2026-02-01T06:43:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T06:43:12","slug":"kendrick-perkins-offers-apology-to-joel-embiid-daryl-morey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/574577\/","title":{"rendered":"Kendrick Perkins offers apology to Joel Embiid, Daryl Morey"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last February, ESPN NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins urged Philadelphia 76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey to trade Joel Embiid and Paul George<\/a> over this past offseason. News that emerged on Saturday would suggest that maybe the 76ers should have indeed traded George, who was suspended 25 games by the NBA<\/a> for violating the league\u2019s anti-drug policy. But Embiid has put together a strong season and has looked like his former NBA MVP self of late.<\/p>\n

During Friday\u2019s edition of NBA Today, Perkins said that he would \u201clike to issue an apology\u201d to Morey and Embiid.<\/p>\n

Perk:<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to issue an apology to Daryl Morey and Joel Embiid because I didn\u2019t expect this. If you\u2019d ask me this two months I thought Joel Embiid was on the verge of retirement and now all of a sudden he\u2019s come back to looking like an all-NBA caliber player\u201d pic.twitter.com\/bsbmMnAOIS<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Oh No He Didn\u2019t (@ohnohedidnt24) January 30, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to an issue an apology,\u201d Perkins began, to the surprise of NBA Today host Hannah Storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, seriously,\u201d Perkins said. \u201cTo Daryl Morey, Joel Embiid, because I didn\u2019t expect this. If you\u2019d ask me this two months ago, I thought Joel Embiid was on the verge of retirement. Seriously. And now, all of a sudden, he\u2019s come back to looking like an All-NBA-caliber player.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we know that he\u2019s going to get buckets, as far as what he does on the perimeter, because he\u2019s one of the most skilled bigs to ever play the damn game of basketball,\u201d Perkins, a former NBA champion center, continued. \u201cBut it\u2019s the lift. He\u2019s dunking the ball now. We saw him catch an alley. He\u2019s playing above the rim. And he\u2019s playing with force.\u201d<\/p>\n

Embiid, 31, is averaging 25.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game this season. He has scored at least 30 points in five of his last six games, including a 37-point effort (13\/21 from the field) in a 113-111 win over the Sacramento Kings on Thursday. He battled knee issues last season and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in April, but he appears to be back to being one of the NBA\u2019s best players now.<\/p>\n

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