Former Sixers Center Richaun Holmes Discussed Joel Embiid's Work Ethic

It's been quite the year here in Philadelphia for the Sixers. As their head coach Brett Brown teased the idea of competing for the first seed in the Eastern Conference, many are quite disappointed to see the Sixers sitting in fifth place with under 40 games left to go.

Fans are also disappointed to see that all of those jump shots and three-pointers Ben Simmons took over the summer are nothing more than a social media reel. Then last but not least, fans are upset with the fact that Joel Embiid's conditioning doesn't look any different than it did last season.

Therefore, at this point, many are saying Embiid is lazy and unmotivated. And because of that thought process, it has caused a slight rift between the Sixers' big man and the fanbase. While it's clear Embiid has struggled with his conditioning at times, is it true that he's actually lazy and not working hard on his game?

Recently, Sixers' head coach Brett Brown defended the big man -- as he should. He claimed that nobody sees what goes on behind the scenes when nobody is in the gym with him. While Brown acknowledges Embiid could "do better" and that "we all could," the Sixers' head coach wasn't allowing everybody to throw shade towards Embiid without everybody hearing his two cents on the topic first.

So we know how the head coach feels about the subject regarding Embiid. Now, what does a former teammate of Embiid's have to say? Richaun Holmes was a second-round pick for the Sixers back in 2015. He came into the organization one year after Embiid did, so he knows his fellow center pretty well.

While Holmes hasn't spent a ton of time working with the Sixers, he has seen his fair share of Joel Embiid working behind the scenes. And according to the 26-year-old big man, Embiid is a "super hard worker."

"That's one thing I don't think people talk about with him enough," Holmes said, according to NBC Sports Philly's Noah Levick. "He works so hard just to get himself in shape, get himself physically ready to step on the court. He wanted to play so badly every day that I saw him. Behind the scenes, he's such a hard worker."

Now that makes two people coming to the defense of Embiid's work ethic in a matter of just a few days. While it was obvious Brown was going to defend his All-Star center, Kings' center Richaun Holmes doesn't necessarily benefit from it. He just spoke his mind based on what he saw -- and it sounds like what he's witnessed during his time here is that Embiid does, in fact, work hard on himself as a player.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_