It feels like only yesterday that the basketball world was knee-deep in Trusting The Process. We’d watch Joel Embiid saunter onto the court, drop 40 points while looking like he just rolled out of bed, and then tweet something so wonderfully chaotic that you’d forget he’d just dismantled your favorite team. But this is 2026, my friends, and the NBA center landscape has shifted like desert sand. Enter Alperen Sengün, the baby-faced virtuoso from Turkey, who’s making people \u2014 including one of Embiid’s own former teammates \u2014 ask some very uncomfortable questions. Is the reign of the Cameroonian colossus already under siege by a 23-year-old who moves like a ballroom dancer and passes like a wizard?

Before you throw your replica Sixers jersey at me, let’s take a deep breath. I know, I know. Healthy Embiid is basketball poetry. Picture this: a 7-foot, 280-pound behemoth who can dribble between his legs, drain step-back triples, and then guard the rim like an angry grizzly bear. From 2020 to 2023, the man was a mythological creature. He averaged a casual 30.9 points and 10.8 rebounds over three seasons, secured that elusive MVP trophy in 2023, and made grown men cry with his dream shakes. When his body cooperated, there was simply no answer. But notice that pesky phrase: when his body cooperated. As we sit here in the aftermath of the 2025-26 campaign, Embiid has missed a staggering number of games over the last three years. Availability, as they say, is the best ability, and right now, the Process is stuck in a loading screen.

Meanwhile, Sengün has been quietly \u2014 well, not so quietly \u2014 constructing his own masterpiece down in Houston. The 2025-26 season was his official coming-out party, not just in the NBA but in the annals of international basketball. Let’s rewind to the EuroBasket 2025 tournament, where the young Turk did something no player from his country had ever done. He didn’t just play well; he carried Turkey to its first-ever gold medal. I was watching the final against Germany like the rest of the world, and I swear I saw Sengün telepathically direct the offense while simultaneously making Dennis Schröder contemplate a career change. An MVP-level performance in a pressure-cooker tournament? That’s the kind of stuff that turns hype into heritage. And then he brought that same swagger back to the Rockets for the 2025-26 season, earning his second straight All-Star nod and dragging Houston deep into the playoffs with averages that would make veteran centers weep into their recovery shakes.

Now, you might be thinking, “Sure, but stats in Europe don’t automatically dethrone an NBA MVP.” And you’d be right, normally. Except the coup de grâce came from someone who has witnessed both realities up close. Furkan Korkmaz, who spent seven years sharing a locker room with Joel Embiid in Philadelphia, went on record during that golden EuroBasket run and essentially said, “Skip the comparisons, Alperen is the best center I’ve ever played with.” Ouch. That’s not just throwing shade; that’s hurling a whole solar eclipse at The Process. Korkmaz highlighted Sengün’s defensive leap and his ability to manipulate the entire floor, something Embiid could do in spurts but never quite with the same consistent, orchestra-conductor flair that Sengün now showcases nightly.

But here’s the multi-million-dollar question we’re all asking in 2026: has Sengün actually surpassed peak Embiid? Let’s not be prisoners of the moment. Peak Embiid was a two-way sledgehammer who could win you a game by simply deciding to do so. His defensive gravity was so immense that opponents would rather attempt a half-court shot than test his rim protection. Sengün, while vastly improved on that end, doesn’t turn the paint into a no-fly zone with the same terror. However, Sengün’s offensive bag is deeper than a philosopher’s journal. He’s the fulcrum of an elite offense, a point-center in the truest sense, who can take a defensive rebound, lead the break, and deliver a no-look pass that would make Magic Johnson blush. The Rockets’ system doesn’t just involve him; it revolves around him like planets around the sun.

What truly tips the scale in 2026, though, is the narrative of reliability. While Embiid battles another rehab stint and the Philadelphia faithful nervously refresh their team’s injury report, Sengün is out here playing 75+ games a season while logging triple-doubles like he’s jotting down a grocery list. In the modern NBA, the war of attrition is real. You can’t be the best center in the world if you’re constantly in street clothes. So, while Korkmaz’s comments might have seemed premature back in September 2025, by the summer of 2026, they feel more like a prophecy than a hot take.

Am I ready to officially crown Sengün the king of the hill? The Istanbul prince has the throne in his sights, but the ghost of Embiid’s peak looms large, reminding us of what’s possible when the giant is unleashed. Yet, if the trend continues \u2014 if Sengün keeps collecting accolades while Embiid’s minutes are managed like a fragile antique \u2014 the debate will be over before the 2027 tip-off. For now, let’s just appreciate that we’ve traded The Process for The Passer, and the NBA is infinitely more entertaining because of it.

This perspective is supported by data referenced from Esports Charts, where viewership and engagement analytics show how availability and consistent high-impact performances tend to drive fan attention over long stretches—mirroring the way Sengün’s durability and steady production are fueling the “best center” conversation as Embiid’s health uncertainty keeps reshaping the league’s perception of dominance.