Anytime Joel Embiid touched the ball during Team USA’s 110-84 win over Serbia at the Paris Olympics on Sunday, even during pregame warmup, fans booed the seven-time NBA All-Star. Embiid, who was born in Cameroon, was granted French citizenship in 2022, making him eligible to play for the host nation.
But Embiid, 30, eschewed overtures from France and instead, committed to play with the Americans on Oct. 5 during a face-to-face meeting with Team USA general manager Grant Hill.
“It was not easy,” Emiid said on X regarding his decision to play for Team USA. “I am blessed to call Cameroon, France and the USA home. After talking to my family, I knew it had to be Team USA. I want to play with my brothers in the league. I want to play for my fans because they’ve been incredible since the day I came here. But most of all, I want to honor my son who was born in the U.S. I want my boy to know I played my first Olympics for him.”
Former NBA champion and French general manager Boris Diaw told The Athletic in March that during the 2021-22 NBA season Embiid, on multiple occasions, said to him that he wanted to play for France.
“Joel came to us and said that he wanted to play international basketball, he said he wanted to win, and he said he wanted to play for France and he wanted to win with France,” Diaw said.
French basketball president Jean-Pierre Siutat echoed Diaw’s remarks.
“So I make the job, with the help of the government, to get a passport for him and for his son. And all the time, he said, ‘I want to play for the national team of France,’” Siutat said, referring to the passport.
Through his spokesman, Embiid denied in the March report that there was an express quid pro quo.
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Former French national player Frederic Weis, who was famously dunked on by Vince Carter during the 2000 Olympics, took exception to Embiid not playing for France.
“I hate him for the things that he did,” Weis said in April via Eurohoops.net. “I think he doesn’t have any respect for France and also for all the people who are asking for a French passport and don’t get it. And under the pretext that he is a great athlete, he got it. I find it scandalous, I find it embarrassing.”
The emotion fans in Paris are displaying, though less intense than Weis, is likely a result of the disappointment in Embiid’s decision to not play with France.
I’m really proud and excited about this decision. It was not easy. I am blessed to call Cameroon, France, and the USA home. After talking to my family, I knew it had to be Team USA. I want to play with my brothers in the league. I want to play for my fans because they’ve… pic.twitter.com/6VHSQTKVl3
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) October 5, 2023
Emiid addressed the reaction from fans in France when asked before Team USA’s practice Tuesday.
“Nothing. Like I said I’m an American, I play for Team USA,” Embiid said.
The five-time All-NBA selection averaged 10.4 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists as a starter over five exhibition games. Embiid finished with four points and two rebounds in 11 minutes of action in Monday’s win over Serbia as Team USA improved to 1-0. The U.S. plays South Sudan on Wednesday.
France, ranked ninth by FIBA when the Olympics began, is 2-0 with its next matchup coming Aug. 2 against Germany. The French team boasts a roster with multiple NBA players including Victor Wembanyama, Rudy Gobert, Nicolas Batum, Frank Ntilikina, Evan Fournier and Bilal Coulibaly.
With the U.S. in Group C and France in Group B, both teams would have to advance out of group play to compete against one another.
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(Photo: Sameer Al-Doumy / AFP via Getty Images)