Joel Embiid Shows Us All How to Handle Dysfunction

As the Phillies continue their quest for the MLB Playoffs and the Eagles prepare for the start of a new season and a new era, Philly fans seem to be finally forgetting about the Sixers disastrous end to their season a couple of months ago.

Unfortunately that isn’t exactly the case because rumors and reports about a Ben Simmons trade has been running rampant since the moment he passed up on a dunk in Game 7 against the Hawks. While it’s not Ben who is directly telling the world that he wants off of the Sixers, the stories continue to come out that he and his management have told the organization that he is not willing to return next year.

The rift between Simmons and the Sixers is so fractured that the once-friendly terms he was on with teammate Joel Embiid is estranged as well. While Embiid has been mostly quiet on the Simmons trade rumors, on Twitter he debunked any stories about the escalating rift between him and Simmons.

Embiid may not be most diplomatic-speaking athlete in the NBA, but he’s at least made it clear publicly that he hopes everyone comes back next year and that it was WE who didn’t get the job done and not JUST Ben. In Ben’s defense, he maybe getting harshly labeled as the scapegoat in what was one of the worst playoff losses in Philadelphia sports history.  The painful truth is that in a team sport it’s the team that wins, and it’s the team that loses.

Still, the easy thing to do is put all the blame one person. It’s easy to make Ben Simmons the scapegoat because he wasn’t the first star player to arrive in Philly in The Process Era, that was Embiid. Embiid developed a huge following in the city years before he ever played a game for the Sixers, Ben never really has. Embiid may have flaws in his game and his off court preparation could be better, but he often gives the impression that he gives it 100% on the court even if he’s running on empty by the end of a game. Ben on the other hand doesn’t try in the few areas that he’s woefully weak at. He’s never improved those weaknesses since Day One, and he’s clearly scared to. And it finally reached a boiling point in Game 7 a couple of months ago.

Believe it or not, Embiid was viewed similarly by fans, not as harshly as Simmons, but it existed.

While 2 years ago feels like 200 years ago, that was reality with how some fans viewed Embiid. But what Joel did was work on his game and delivered an MVP-caliber season in 2021. Ben is probably not going to improve his game next year despite his many staged videos showing him practicing.

And finally concluding his series of wise tweets, Embiid put out something that may or may not have been a subtle shot at Simmons.

This type of statement shows the difference between good players and great ones. Say what you want about Embiid, he has established himself as a great player. Ben Simmons has been a good player since his high school days, but to this day he refuses to make that next step. And if he ever does, it probably won’t be in Philadelphia.

As tough as places like New York and Boston are to play, no place is tougher and demands more excellence than Philly, fair or not fair. Embiid didn’t have to sign a supermax extension to remain in the most difficult place to play, but he did because he’s ready to take on the greatest challenge. Ben probably doesn’t want to climb that big mountain anymore, and it’s best for both parties that he climbs an easier one.

By Mike McCarrick | September 3, 2021
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