It was thought that the Philadelphia 76ers had assembled a championship-caliber team this summer when they signed veteran star forward Paul George and added him to a roster that already included superstar center Joel Embiid and rising star guard Tyrese Maxey.
But Embiid has missed a bunch of games for multiple reasons, and the Sixers started the season 2-12.
While they have since won eight of 13 games, it isn’t sunny in Philadelphia by any means right now.
Former Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce said on Fox Sports 1’s “Speak” that Embiid needs to leave the Sixers and could use a change of scenery.
.@paulpierce34: Joel Embiid needs to part ways with Philly. 🤷🏾♂️ #JoelEmbiid #Philly #Sixers pic.twitter.com/LqSMXkSnYI
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) December 24, 2024
Embiid’s problems this season have gone beyond his health or even his apparent unwillingness to take the risk of playing in sets of back-to-back games.
In November, he shoved a reporter in the locker room after that reporter had written an article about him that criticized him for missing games, and he ended up getting suspended for three games as a result.
Later that month, the team held a meeting during which Maxey criticized the center for being late to team activities.
Then on Monday, in a loss to Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, Embiid was ejected after vehemently arguing a foul call that was charged to him and subsequently charging after one of the referees.
His numbers this season — 20.6 points on 41.7 percent field-goal shooting and 6.8 rebounds a game — are well below par for him, and it looks like the ceiling for this Sixers team is starting to cave in on them.
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