Joel Embiid was one of the heroes on Thursday who helped Team USA reach the gold medal game in a comeback win over Serbia, but the 2023 NBA MVP embraced his inner villain after the victory.
The 76ers star — playing for Team USA after picking them over France or Cameroon — stood at center court dancing and egging the crowd on to boo him.
Then he appeared to do a “suck it” motion akin to something from WWE before walking toward the American locker room.
Embiid has had no problem encouraging the fans to boo him during the tournament and has clearly reveled in it at times over the course of the 2024 Olympics.
“I mean, I play in Philly. They boo their own guys,” Embiid said. “Sometimes, it feels like our fans are more against us when they’re supposed to be against our opponent. But like I said, it’s all love, is all, because they want to push you.”
The animosity from the French dates back to Embiid’s decision to play for the United States over France despite being granted French Citizenship in 2022.
Embiid, born in Cameroon, claimed that the talks with Team France about playing for them never got any further than his initial expression of interest in playing for the country.
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The United States, fittingly enough, will face the French in the gold medal game on Saturday.
Embiid played a massive role in Thursday’s win to reach that contest, with 19 points on 8-for-11 shooting and four rebounds.
The U.S. was forced to rally to get the 95-91 win over Serbia in the semifinals, and it was Embiid’s offense that helped close the gap to help set the stage for LeBron James and Steph Curry to knock down clutch shots late in the game.
Team USA is going for its fifth consecutive gold medal in the summer games.
