Foot problems scare me with big guys, but I still think Embiid is worth drafting early. He has some of the best offensive footwork I've seen from a prospect, and he's only been playing for four years, and he's a legit 7' with solid athleticism. Those kinds of players are rarities; there are really only 3 true centers in the game today that you can count on for 15+ PPG (Howard, Jefferson, Cousins) and none of those guys are legitimate 7-footers, and only Howard is both a scoring threat and a rim-protecting defensive anchor. If you have the ability to acquire a potentially dominant two-way center, you do it.
As for comparing Embiid to Drummond, it's an interesting discussion. You won't find a bigger Drummond fan than me, but I understand why Embiid is more highly regarded coming out of the draft. He's shown more basketball skill, whereas Drummond was productive due to his all-world athleticism and frame.
I understand where some GMs may have been skeptical about how Drummond would translate to the NBA, but in retrospect that's been proven to be decidedly foolish. In fact, Drummond already has 2 years of NBA experience and is only 7 months older than Embiid right now. Drummond, at 20, showed flashes of dominance while posting the second best rebounding/game (13.2) and FG% (62.3%) in the league. He's been in the top 17 in Player Efficiency Rating both of his seasons in the league so far. And in his best facet of the game, offensive rebounding, I don't think people realize just how dominant he's been; he led the league in offensive rebounds (440), and had more than 100 more than second place (D. Jordan - 331). His 440 O-Boards are good for 9th most in a single-season all-time... at 20 years old. And his supreme offensive rebounding skills explains how a player who gets essentially no plays called for him can still average 13.5 PPG. Drummond is like a young Moses Malone, but about 70 pounds bigger. If he can get his free-throw shooting to respectable levels, Drummond is going to be one of the most most dominant, effective players over the next 10-15 years.
