Joel Embiid is one of the best centers in the entire world right now. While he may be hurt during the second-round series between Miami and Philadelphia, Embiid has proven himself as one of the best in the league. He’d be undisputed #1 if not for Nikola Jokic, but we can still pick either.
Embiid’s story of discovery is quite amazing, as the 7-footer didn’t even play basketball until the age of 15. He had to be discovered by Luc Mbah a Moute in Cameroon before he’d emigrate to the USA to pursue his career.
Despite his Cameroonian roots, it looks like Embiid might be letting ambition make some major decisions, as the big man has started the procedure to become a French citizen and thus, be eligible to represent France in international competitions. This was reported by reputed French outlet RMC Sports.
REPORT: Joel Embiid has “initiated administrative procedures to obtain French nationality” so he could play with France’s international team.
(via @RMCsport) pic.twitter.com/En6v8qCMBY
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) May 2, 2022
Embiid has played no international games in his career and has already turned 28 years old. With his family living in France, Embiid will try to become a naturalized citizen of the country and become the only naturalized citizen on the current France team (FIBA allows one naturalized player per team).
The French Basketball team boasts many NBA stars, most notable, Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier, and Nicholas Batum. Embiid would have to form a twin-tower center lineup alongside Gobert to make their partnership fruitful. However, this duo might be unstoppable for most teams, but whether it can beat the USA is a different question.
Embiid’s reluctance to play for Cameroon has not allowed him to have a career playing international basketball. But he can switch nations at the age of 28 and possibly have a chance towards an Olympic medal or a World Cup win in the next few years, depending on whether he actually starts playing for the French team.
