On Friday, LeBron James took to Twitter in defense of 76ers star Joel Embiid. After the media hounded Embiid about “ducking” his game against Nikola Jokic, the true extent of his injury was revealed and now James is calling for accountability from those who were so quick to judge him.
“Where are all the media outlets, tv media personalities, hot takes that talked so much about Joel Embiid about missing those games when he knew what he was dealing with,” asked James. “Now he’s out with an injury because of it. Not 1 person has went back on tv or their dumbass podcast and apologized to that MAN!! No accountability.”
No matter what the situation is with Embiid, it certainly was a bad look for him to suddenly miss the game against his biggest rival, Nikola Jokic. Right away, fans and media members like Kendrick Perkins were quick to accuse him of ducking the Joker to avoid getting outplayed. But after being diagnosed with a lateral meniscus tear that will keep him out indefinitely, it’s impossible to deny that the injuries are legitimate.
The Critics Were Wrong About Joel Embiid
In the past, Joel Embiid has had no problems participating in load management. In fact, he’s become the poster child for the tradition along with Clippers star Kawhi Leonard. So when he was a late scratch for the game against the Nuggets in Denver (a place he hasn’t played since 2019) people naturally just assumed the worst. Kendrick Perkins said he would “shut him down” for the season while Nuggets coach Michael Malone demanded that the NBA start an investigation. Meanwhile, the fans were laying into the star big man on social media, blitzing him with all kinds of accusations and comments about being scared to face Jokic.
When Embiid returned to drop just 14 points in the next game, the 76ers came out to accuse the fans/media of pressuring him to play through injury. But now, the tables have turned on everyone as Embiid is out of action for the foreseeable future. So far, no retractions or apologies have been made to Joel but he’ll likely use it as fuel to power a massive run when he eventually returns. Clearly, LeBron James is pissed about how it went down and you can bet that the 76ers are even more upset.
Can The Philadelphia 76ers Survive Without Joel Embiid?
With averages of 35.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game on 53% shooting, Joel Embiid isn’t just an All-Star this season, he’s a front-running MVP candidate. If not for his likelihood to exceed the NBA’s 65-game award minimum, he’d probably be a back-to-back winner by the end of this campaign. Unfortunately, Joel is almost surely out of the running now as he could only afford to miss a handful of games to be eligible for MVP.
The important issue for the 76ers is finding out how to survive without him. Already down to 5th in the East, Philly can’t afford to keep going like this without risking their place in the playoff bracket. For now, their only hope for salvation rests in Tyrese Maxey, who is slated to make his first All-Star appearance this month. If he can turn his game up to another level, it will help the 76ers hold their ground in the standing until the big man gets back.
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