Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has caught the attention of many critics with his response to the talk surrounding him about his willingness to play for the team. On Friday, Embiid responded to those who criticized him for his inability to stay healthy.
In front of the media, the Sixers star chastised anyone who doubted his desire to play for the team. He mentioned his contributions to the organization throughout the years during his interview. According to Embiid, he’s done too much for the city of Philadelphia and doesn’t deserve to be treated poorly by creating a false narrative about his commitment.
On Friday’s episode of “NBA TV,” former NBA player Greg Anthony aired his frustration over Embiid‘s statement. The current analyst said the NBA star is brewing drama with his recent comments.
“Not well,” Anthony said when asked how Embiid’s comments land. “This comes from a Joel Embiid fan. I’m a huge fan of his talent… but no one wants to hear the pity party. We can appreciate the talent, we understand it’s been frustrating and I don’t blame him for the injuries. But we don’t need to hear about it, you don’t need to create a distraction. I never understood when he came out initially and said [he] won’t probably play in a back-to-back.”
“You basically throw your team and the organization under the bus because you created a talking point. I would recommend, just stay off social media. Don’t worry about what people are saying, just focus on getting healthy, when you come back, be ready to help this team contend. All you’re doing is creating more drama for yourself with these comments.”
Anthony went on to say that the organization and the star won’t benefit anything from what Embiid said.
“Nothing positive is gonna come from this if you’re Joel Embiid or the Sixers.”
"All you're doing is creating more drama for yourself" 👀@GregAnthony50 weighs in on Joel Embiid's latest comments 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/fy14zKKebJ
— NBA TV (@NBATV) November 2, 2024
Embiid hasn’t played a single game this season due to the injury management to his left knee. Fortunately, he gave an update on Friday regarding his upcoming return.
Joel Embiid is listed as out against the Memphis Grizzlies
The Sixers’ injury report was made public before their matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday. Joel Embiid remains out for the team as he continues to deal with his left knee, which is under monitoring. NBA star Paul George is also listed as out for their game against Memphis.
George is dealing with a left knee bone bruise. Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports reported that the birth stars have started participating in 5-on-5 games during practice.
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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.
