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Ex-French star wants 76ers’ Joel Embiid banned in France after Team USA pick

Originally posted on ClutchPoints | By Jay Postrado | Last updated 4/21/24

Team USA men’s basketball squad for the 2024 Paris Olympics is loaded with so much talent. It will feature generation-defining athletes as well as the new generation of stars in the NBA. However, this abundance of greatness is not safe from any controversy. Notably, Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers chose to represent the stars and stripes over Cameroon and France. This decision obviously ticked off a lot of individuals, especially Fred Weis.

The former France Olympics star brought up a sentiment that currently echoes throughout the world of basketball. He outlined why Joel Embiid’s decision to join Team USA was very shameful, via Eurohoops.

“I consider this boy a great player as much as he is a dirty guy and I hate him for the things that he did. 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. I don’t care about his excuses, ’cause they are his words, and his words mean nothing,” Fred Weis said about the 76ers star.

The French basketball player, famous for getting dunked on by Vince Carter, did not stop there. He even called for Joel Embiid’s passport to be revoked.

“I would take away from him the French nationality and I would ban him from entering France. You will not play in the Olympics and you will come to the airport with Team USA and we will say, You don’t have the right to enter the territory, go to your home. You are Cameroonian, you are American, you are not French, go away,” he added.

76ers star gets blasted

Apr 15, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) is double-teamed by Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie (26) and center Nic Claxton (33) during the third quarter of game one of the 2023 NBA playoffs at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports © Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The 76ers star was born in Cameroon. He was then discovered by Luc Mbah a Moute. This former NBA player took him under his wing and brought him to the USA when he was 16. Embiid went on to join Montverde Academy for one year. After he moved to The Rock School, Embiid found himself joining Kansas. The rest? Well, you could say it was history that came after. This long history with the stars and stripes may have been another reason for his choice.

Nonetheless, Fred Weis posits that Embiid’s Team USA decision is a perfect representation of the problems that plague international play. He presupposes that the 76ers star’s choice is a business decision that he does not appreciate.

“For me, we are living in an era of sports business and now we are choosing the national team, pretty much the way we are choosing our club. Who gives me the better offer? Who is giving me the best chance to win? I will go there. And unfortunately, that’s accepted pretty much everywhere,” he declared.

Embiid was the frontrunner to get the Most Valuable Player award yet again for 2023-24. This held true until he went down with an injury. He got back to play for the 76ers but unfortunately took a hard fall in the NBA Playoffs. Team USA hopes that he will be in perfect condition once they enter the training camps for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

This article first appeared on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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