Joel Embiid Reveals Advice for a Struggling Furkan Korkmaz

Early on in the 2021-2022 NBA season, it seemed that Philadelphia 76ers reserve sharpshooter Furkan Korkmaz was really beginning to hit his stride. As Korkmaz

Early on in the 2021-2022 NBA season, it seemed that Philadelphia 76ers reserve sharpshooter Furkan Korkmaz was really beginning to hit his stride. As Korkmaz was coming off of a season where he averaged nearly ten points while shooting 37-percent from three, Korkmaz once again had an opportunity to be a key player in Philadelphia's primary rotation.

For his first ten games of the season, Korkmaz averaged 13 points per game while draining 42-percent of his shots. Since then, he's struggled to produce in the same way as cold spells from beyond the arc became more common than a decent outing.

In the next 46 games, Korkmaz averaged just seven points off the bench with around 22 minutes of playing time per game. On 3.9 three-point attempts per game, Korkmaz has drained just 25-percent of his deep shots.

As the Turkish veteran is expected to knock down threes at a consistent rate, anything below league-average is hard to accept -- especially because long-range shooting is Korkmaz's strongest basketball trait by a wide margin. 

Unfortunately, he's struggled all year long to heat back up as he continues to deal with a cold streak down the final stretch of the regular season.

Joel Embiid's Advice

Sixers superstar center Joel Embiid doesn't struggle often, but he's had his fair share of tough obstacles to overcome throughout his career. While the expectations are lower for a guy like Korkmaz, he still has a lot of pressure on him as his spot in Philly's primary rotation is currently on the line.

“I told him right after the game, you can never get too high or too low,” said Joel Embiid on Saturday. “When you play well, don’t let it get to you. And when you play bad, you always know that you can get better. So, he’s gonna be fine. He’s frustrated about his play and I’m sure he’s gonna pick it up, but it’s on us to also make it easy for him. That’s all I told him, but he’s gonna be fine.”

Lately, Korkmaz has found himself falling out of favor with Sixers head coach Doc Rivers. Before the All-Star break, Korkmaz averaged over 20 minutes on the floor. Before Saturday's game in Miami, the young veteran saw his minutes dip as he averaged just ten minutes per game since returning from the break.

With James Harden ruled out for Saturday's game, Rivers had to shake things up. Therefore, he started Korkmaz for the 19th time this year. With an opportunity to turn things around, Korkmaz failed to make an impact.

In 21 minutes, Korkmaz put up just five shots. He drained one field goal and missed all four of his shots from beyond the arc. Korkmaz wrapped up Saturday's loss with just two points and four rebounds. It's unclear how many opportunities Korkmaz has left, but it wouldn't be shocking to see him continue to fade out of the picture as the playoffs approach.

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