Joel Embiid's 70-Point Game Shows How Far Victor Wembanyama Has to Go

Facing highly touted San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama on Monday, Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid put together one of the more dominant performances in recent memory.

Embiid set the new high-water mark for points in a game in the 2023-24 NBA season and set the new Sixers record for points in a game, dropping 70 points to lead the way in a 133-123 victory. That broke Wilt Chamberlain's previous record of 68, which had stood since 1967.

After the game, the Sixers briefly gave Embiid the silent treatment in the locker room before dousing him with water in celebration.

"Credit to these guys. Extremely unselfish people," Embiid said in his walk-off interview. "I've got unselfish teammates that got me the ball. I was hot, and they made sure that they put me in the best position. Credit to the coaching staff too. I'm just surrounded by amazing people."

Embiid is the betting favorite to win MVP this year if he can reach the league's new benchmarks. Before the season, the NBA announced that players would need to play a minimum of 65 games to be eligible for end-of-season awards like MVP, All-NBA and All-Defense. Embiid has already missed 10 games, giving him just seven remaining PTO days if he hopes to take home hardware for the second year in a row.

That's the level to which Wembanyama has a chance to ascend, and even after a difficult evening defensively on Monday, the Spurs rookie is off to a great start. Embiid pushed him around with relative ease, but Wembanyama pushed back a bit on the offensive end, scoring 33 points on 10-for-19 shooting (2-for-5 from three, 11-for-12 from the free-throw line).

Embiid appeared struck by Wembanyama's build when he walked by him in the layup line. A 7-footer himself, Embiid was clearly shorter than even a slouching Wembanyama, and even after a 70-point game, Embiid said he could see the rookie's potential.

"That dude is something," Embiid said. "He's got all the time in the world, and he's amazing. He had a great game today. He has a bright future."

Still, whether Embiid meant to say this or not, one thing was clear: Wembanyama will be special in the future, but he will need to overcome (or at least outlast) players of Embiid's caliber to reach the highest echelons of the NBA. Wembanyama is undeniably impressive, averaging a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double in his first season, but he's now in a league full of impressive players who have been playing basketball a lot longer than him.

Reporters asked Spurs coach Gregg Popovich after the game if playing against Embiid is particularly educational for Wembanyama. Popovich praised Embiid profusely, calling him "wonderful," but he declined to single out a 70-point outpouring as a specific lesson for Wembanyama. The Spurs aren't rushing his progress, and rookies have lessons to learn from stars and role players alike.

"Victor gets an education every game," Popovich said. "There's stuff to learn for rookies every single game. It doesn't matter what the team is or who the players are."

For his part, Wembanyama seemed to take the lesson to heart. A reporter asked him if he is able to learn when he plays against players like Embiid, even if the lessons aren't always easy.

"Yeah, of course," Wembanyama said. "About the greats, one of the great players, but also about myself."