Top 10 stories from the Big 12 regular season

 #5: Joel Embiid the better Kansas freshman?

Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Fairly or unfairly, the bar for Andrew Wiggins was to be the best college basketball player in the country. Many compared him to LeBron James and expected absolute dominance in his one collegiate season before the NBA. Before the year he was the easy number one pick in the NBA draft. Now, he’s not even the best draft prospect on his own team! It’s completely unthinkable if you asked anyone with basketball knowledge six months ago. That is until everyone saw Joel Embiid play.

Yes, I know he has a back injury, but let’s put that aside for a minute. Embiid is unbelievably athletic and skilled for a seven foot big man. He draws comparisons to Hakeem Olajuwon, which is high praise and all but is very realistic when you see him play. This was supposed to be a raw project for Bill Self, but instead his work ethic has made him skilled with an incredibly high ceiling. The Jayhawks need him in order to win the National Championship, so they are hoping his back is healthy just as much as the General Managers in the NBA drooling over him.