The 2023 NBA Most Valuable Player, Joel Embiid, is torn between choosing which country to represent – the USA or France. A conundrum of which flag the Philadelphia 76ers superstar should wear is making a buzz in the basketball world. But, is Joel Embiid eligible to play under Team USA?
Lately, Embiid’s name has been dropped everywhere as Team USA’s number one priority. The National team’s managing director, Grant Hill, has even spoken about them recruiting Embiid for Team USA. In a SiriusXM NBA Radio podcast, Hill admitted he has been talking to the reigning MVP.
“I’ll just answer it with a simple answer and that’s, ‘Yes, I’ve talked to him,'” Hill said. “No, I mean, look, he has options, he’s a great player. But he’s also somebody who we’ve talked to about next summer, and we’ll see. We’ll see how that plays out.”
Can Joel Embiid play for Team USA?
Technically, Embiid can definitely represent the USA in the 2024 Olympics. That is if he wants to. In July 2022, the Cameroon native acquired citizenship in France. A few months later, he also received one from the United States. With American citizenship, Joel Embiid can rightfully wear the Red, White, and Blue jersey on the international stage.
However, it seems that France is also pursuing the NBA star. Although the European country quickly fell from World Cup contention, their roster isn’t the best one yet. Earlier, Victor Wembanyama begged off from the team to focus on his NBA rookie season making the French National team one star down. With a team featuring Wembanyama, Embiid, Nicolas Batum, Evan Fournier, Frank Ntilikina, and Rudy Gobert, a shot at the Gold medal is not impossible.
USA or France?
It all boils down to which country Embiid wants to represent. He can either join the Americans to create a powerhouse team that might even feature LeBron James and Steph Curry or band with the French prodigy Victor Wembanyama and bring the first basketball gold medal to France.
One thing is for sure, Joel Embiid will be the x-factor. In the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Team USA won the Gold against France in a very close match. Despite a star-studded crew, they only won by 5 points which suggests that the French almost had them. With Embiid, a different outcome may happen depending on which team he sides. France will be hosting the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
LeBron James hints at joining Team USA in the 2024 Olympics
NBA Central’s official X (Twitter) account proposed a Team USA roster that would be led by NBA superstars, namely Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, LeBron James, and many others. What surprised everyone is that the Lakers star reacted to the same photo with a side-eye emoji, leading us to believe he’s thinking about it, too.
In fact, it would be a remarkable comeback for the American team after failing to capture the Gold Medal in the FIBA WC and be named as World Champions. LBJ has already participated in three Team USA Olympics tours, wherein he won two golds (2008,2012) and a bronze medal (2004) for his country. After the 2023 playoffs, LBJ thought of possibly retiring from basketball. Fortunately, he chose to stay. James is currently entering his 21st NBA season. At 38 years old, The King hasn’t slowed down one bit. Argued by many as The Greatest of All Time, LeBron is still a force to reckon with. If he joins Team USA, James will be 39 years old by the start of the 2024 Olympics.
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