The Philadelphia 76ers addressed their issues following a slow start to the 2024-25 NBA season. The Sixers held a team meeting following their 106-89 loss against the Miami Heat on Nov. 18, where Tyrese Maxey reportedly called out Joel Embiid for his habitual tardiness. The Sixers didn’t plan for the information of their conversation to be publicized, but it found its way to the media.
On Tuesday, former NBA star Charles Barkley addressed the issue with the Sixers and Joel Embiid on the new episode of TNT’s “Inside the NBA.” Barkley called out Embiid for his tardiness and also addressed the leaked information from their meeting.
“You can’t be late all the time. That’s disrespectful to your teammates and your coaches and everybody. First, Joel has to own that,” the former Sixers star said about Embiid.
“Whoever leaked that to the press needs to be punched in the face… When you’re in those meetings, they’re very personal, especially when you’re calling out a guy like that… Joel has to own being late all the time. He has to own it, but that should have never gotten to the press.”
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported the content of the Sixers’ meeting. Maxey “challenged” the 2023 MVP for his tendency to arrive late for team events, the insider disclosed.
“In the meeting, Maxey challenged Embiid to be on time to team activities, calling out the former league MVP about being late ‘for everything’ and how it impacts the locker room, from other players to the coaching staff,” Charania reported.
.@ShamsCharania breaks down the Philadelphia 76ers' emergency team meeting after their 2-11 start to the season with @PatMcAfeeShow 😳 pic.twitter.com/8BtEp6lCH2
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 19, 2024
Joel Embiid’s professionalism was often questioned by the organization and the league
Sam Amick of The Athletic revealed during his Monday guest appearance on “Run It Back” that Joel Embiid’s professionalism has always been questioned.
“I knew that his professionalism had been questioned consistently,” Amick said. “Around the league and within the organization. I was a little surprised by — the second the top was blown off this story. Then, all of a sudden… the narrative instantly became like, ‘Oh, you and the media, y’all have been way too soft on him and this has been going on forever’.”
“That contrast between the discussion before and the discussion after was pretty great. I’m still not sure what my take is on how much folks are piling on, versus what’s really been the case.”
“I knew his professionalism had been questioned consistently.”
Sam Amick on Joel Embiid’s reputation.@MichelleDBeadle | @TeamLou23 | @ChandlerParsons pic.twitter.com/U34vQT4kyj
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) November 25, 2024
Throughout all this, Embiid has not released a statement to address the situation around him.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen with Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
