You know what they say: NBA superstars never forget.
In Joel Embiid’s case, they may not ever forgive, either.
Speaking with reporters in advance of the Philadelphia 76ers’ Game 2 matchup with the Boston Celtics, the All-Star center lamented the time his team spent as the punchline to everyone’s jokes. Here are his full thoughts, per NBC Sports’ Jessica Camerato:
Winning, naturally, draws more fans and positivity around a team. Joel Embiid gets that. At the same time, he’s not about to forget what being on the Sixers was like just a few seasons ago when much of that support wasn’t there.
“My mindset has always been, three, four years ago, no one was around, no one was talking about us,” Embiid said after practice Wednesday. “Anything new, that always comes, I’m like, ‘That’s nice.’ But like, where was everybody three or four years ago?” …
“I kind of hold grudges because three, four years ago we were the laughingstock of the whole NBA,” Embiid said. “Then now we’re here, everybody’s talking about us. I don’t think it makes a difference. (Philadelphia basketball icon) Sonny Hill always tells me, you can’t get too high, can’t get too low, you’ve got to always keep your balance.”
So, like, this is complicated.
Embiid isn’t lying. The Sixers were, indeed, a laughingstock just a few years ago. But they were that team by design. Serial losers are easy targets for peddlers of sarcasm. That’s the risk then-general manager Sam Hinkie ran when he began The Process.
Also, the Sixers might not have been as big of a joke if Embiid himself were healthy. He missed his first two NBA seasons due to injury, just like Nerlens Noel missed his rookie year before him, and just like Ben Simmons missed his rookie campaign after him. That run of bad luck is tough to escape. It’s hard to blame people for making jokes. The Sixers haven’t even technically evaded that misfortune. Markelle Fultz, last June’s No. 1 pick, has hardly played this year. Philly is merely so good and stacked now it doesn’t matter.
Still, whatever motivates Embiid is fine by me. The Sixers are fun again, and if he wants to hold a grudge, by all means, let him.
