Kevin Durant praises Joel Embiid ahead of Thursday's Nets vs. 76ers showdown: 'He's really unstoppable'

Joel Embiid is rampaging toward his first MVP award this season, and on Thursday, he'll face off with a former winner in his team's biggest game yet. The Philadelphia 76ers will host the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday in James Harden's first game against his former team, but in a video for Boardroom, Kevin Durant went out of his way to praise Harden's new teammate, Embiid.

"He's really unstoppable," Durant said of the MVP frontrunner. "He said something where he was like I can transform from like Kobe, to Hakeem, to Shaq, to a couple other players and I was like, 'Yo, you're telling the truth.'"

Stylistically, Embiid was absolutely right. Like Hakeem Olajuwon, he is a decorated defensive stopper. He has made three All-Defensive Teams and could make a fourth this season. Like Shaquille O'Neal, he is basically impossible to defend in the post. He is scoring 8.7 points per game in the post. No one else is averaging more than 5.4. Like Kobe Bryant, Embiid can score from anywhere on the floor. He is shooting a respectable 43.5 percent in the mid-range and 35.1 percent from behind the arc. Few centers can match that efficiency on his volume.

Durant is a different sort of player. He can score like Bryant, but he lacks the physical tools needed to play like Olajuwon or O'Neal. That doesn't mean he can't appreciate them, though. As a former MVP, he understands what it means to play at that level. He's been doing it for over a decade. Embiid is there now, and in addition to Thursday's battle, they may see each other once again in the playoffs. If they do, Durant won't be giving Embiid any bulletin board material to work with.

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