Joel Embiid’s status remains in “question” tonight as the 76ers face the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena.
Despite suiting up in Monday’s loss to the Miami Heat, Embiid was initially listed as out for today’s game with an unnamed illness. Fans were disappointed until the star big man came out to deny the claim, calling the story an elaborate April Fool’s joke.
“Must be April Fools joke???? Played against Miami in the same conditions, and I’m planning to play tonight,” wrote Embiid on X. “I guess they won’t let me play basketball!”
We will find out soon enough what happened, but unless there was some communication error, it’s almost surely Embiid who is pulling the prank here. He was ruled out this morning, and it would be too late for him to play now, even though he’s likely perfectly healthy. Naturally, the “prank” wasn’t taken well by everyone, especially given his history of absences.
“That is so messed up for a dude that misses so many games to make a joke about being out sick,” wrote one fan on X.
The 76ers star is a notorious jokester and prankster, and often uses occasions like this to pull a fast one on his fans. This one, however, was made in especially poor taste. With the 76ers in a fierce battle for the sixth seed, they need all the help they can get right now, and having Embiid out there could mean the difference between a win and a loss. In 36 games this season, he’s averaging 26.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 0.6 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game on 49.5% shooting from the field and 34.0% shooting from three.
“It’s beyond old, though, on its surface totally gets a joke… but this team is a f ing joke,” one fan wrote. “These games are big for seeding, and his b**ch ass is out AGAIN… no wonder y so few care about this team. Bunch of losers and loser vibes.”
He gave fans a glimmer of hope that he might be available to play today when he already knows that he won’t be on the court. In fact, this absence was likely staged for months in advance as part of his long-term health plan. While Embiid may have found great amusement in faking his return, fans were less than impressed with his attempt at humor.
“Why is it funny to say you’re not out when you are? The only humor I find in that is the fact that he thinks it’s funny,” wrote one fan on X.
If Embiid were someone who hardly ever missed games or was always on the court for his team, those jokes might be more tolerable. But for a guy who is known for not being there when his team needs him most, there’s only so much fans are going to take.
Tonight, in such a high-stakes game for the Sixers, Embiid will not be there due to an “illness” that he more than likely can play through, if it’s even there at all. That’s the kind of thing he should not be drawing attention to, and yet he makes it the subject of his April Fool’s joke. That behavior explains his entire tenure with the 76ers so far and why he may always fall short of fan expectations.
