Sixer Sense delivers the goods for OKC Thunder TIP3

Kline delivers the inside take on the core:

Embiid’s ceiling is obviously the highest of the bunch, and we’re already seeing just how special he can be. Even with 53 games under his belt, I feel comfortable saying Embiid is the best center is basketball. He may not have all the offensive nuances that DeMarcus Cousins does, but his ability to impact the game on both sides of the ball is unmatched. He’s an annual Defensive Player of the Year candidate in the making, and still — even without any further improvement — will be a handful for any defender around the basket.

That’s where health comes into play with JoJo. He has all the tools and talent needed to be a transcendent player, it’s just a matter of whether or not he can stay on the floor. He has done a nice job of limiting the reckless plays that made everyone hold their breath last season, but there’s innate injury risk for any 7-foot-2 big who tries to make plays like Embiid does. His minutes are going up (a career-high 39 in Minnesota) and he hasn’t had any major scares this season, but it’s tough to say there isn’t any concern.

As for Simmons, his ceiling is also insanely high. We’re talking about two players who, if things break their way, could easily become top-10 players down the line. Simmons might have a tougher time getting there — and Embiid might already be there on a good day — but that’s where their ceiling lies. Even without a jumper, Simmons’ size and quickness allows him to get wherever he wants on the floor. He has insane vision, the ability to pinpoint passes from any angle and some underrated defensive tools to boot. More aggressiveness as a finisher and fewer turnovers are the two biggest areas where Simmons needs to improve moving forward.

When it comes to finding a third star to pair alongside the two, Markelle Fultz is the ideal solution. Obviously Markelle wasn’t great to begin the year, but it’s tough to take anything major away from four games with a bum shoulder that wouldn’t allow him to shoot.

The pain is gone and he seems on track for a return later in the season, so ideally we’ll get a sense of where he actually stands before the season ends. Another playmaker who can generate offense in the halfcourt and space the floor is exactly what Philly’s rotation currently lacks, so Fultz — if he lives up to the potential so many believed he had coming into the season — could very well complete a ‘Big 3’ of sorts for Brett Brown’s squad.

And thus, if we’re talking ceilings, it’s hard not to pin Embiid’s somewhere around the best players in the league. He was already hovering around the top-five MVP rankings earlier in the year, and there’s still room for him to play more minutes and grow as a player. His passing out of the post (and limiting turnovers) are things he needs to improve, but we’ve already seen flashes of that growth — especially in Tuesday’s win against Minnesota. He has a physical advantage in almost every scenario, and that allows him to slow the game down and control possessions in a way not too many players can.