New Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse said on Patrick Beverley’s podcast that he wants Joel Embiid to be a more disruptive rim protector next season. Nurse, who won the 2019 NBA title with the Toronto Raptors, replaced Doc Rivers as the Sixers’ new coach.

Embiid is “genuinely excited” to play for Nurse, according to NBA insider Paul Hudrick of SB Nation’s “Liberty Ballers.” The Sixers fired Rivers after the 2023 playoffs and hired Nurse.

“Embiid trusts Daryl Morey and managing partner Josh Harris, according to a league source,” Hudrick wrote. “He also feels a loyalty to the organization for the way they supported him during the early trials of his career. But as Robert Frost once said, nothing gold can stay.

“Presently, Embiid is where he wants to be and he’s gearing up to play with Tyrese Maxey and the rest of the group Morey assembles. He’s genuinely excited to play for new head coach Nick Nurse, per a league source. The non-Harden vibes with the Sixers as a whole are actually good.”

NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Joel Embiid, Nick Nurse, Philadelphia 76ers Updates

Embiid wants to remain with the Sixers despite James Harden requesting a trade, according to NBA insider Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. Embiid has removed “Processing” and the location “Philadelphia, PA” from his Twitter bio. However, Shelburne believes the NBA superstar is just trolling.

In 394 regular-season games with the Sixers, Embiid is averaging 27.2 points and 11.2 rebounds. He has made six All-Star teams, five All-NBA teams and three All-Defensive teams and won one MVP Award. However, the Sixers have never gotten past the second round of the playoffs in the Embiid era.

Embiid averaged 33.1 points and 10.2 rebounds last season for the Sixers while shooting 54.8% from the field, 33.0% from beyond the arc and 85.7% from the free-throw line. He won the NBA MVP Award over Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic. Philadelphia swept the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the 2023 playoffs but lost to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in seven games.

Embiid, who signed a four-year, $210 million contract extension in 2021, obviously wants Harden to stay with the Sixers, but Harden intends to “never wear” a Philadelphia uniform again, sources told NBA Analysis Network.

NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Joel Embiid, Nick Nurse, Philadelphia 76ers Updates

Nurse won the 2019 championship with the Raptors over the Golden State Warriors in six games. He also won the 2019-20 Coach of the Year Award. It will be interesting to see how many games the Sixers win next season in Nurse’s offensive and defensive system.

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