On Monday, Joel Embiid, after being a lightning rod for criticism following his decision to suit up for Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics, reneging on his initial commitment to the France national basketball program, received his Olympic ring for helping USBMNT win the gold medal. This vindicates the Philadelphia 76ers star’s decision to join Team USA even further, as he has two pieces of silverware in his award cabinet to help remind him that he made the right choice.
However, even in moments of glory, there are some fans who find it funny to joke about Embiid’s basketball achievements, or lack thereof. Many jeered at the 76ers star, saying that the Team USA Olympic ring he received will be the only basketball-related ring he’ll be achieving — implying that he’ll never win an NBA championship.
“Only ring he’ll ever get tbh,” X user @Brian_s20 wrote.
“Cheapest championship ring ever,” @15DT15 added.
“his only ring before retirement,” @AIByteMe furthered.
Nonetheless, there were some who came to Embiid’s defense; the 76ers star, after all, earned this by putting his body on the line and suiting up for Team USA even though it looked like he wasn’t 100 percent healthy when he did.
“Yall sayin “only ring he’ll ever get” like this shit ain’t a bigger accomplishment than u’ll ever reach in ur life got me ctfu 
Hate is a DISEASE,” @FrankieFigz expressed.
“As a Celtics fan good for him he deserves it, hope he gets healthy somehow,” @tatumistheg0at wrote.
“Glad to see a smile on Joel Embiid’s face after the brutal month/year he’s had,” @SixersBlog added.
Indeed, for someone who’s endured a terrible season like Embiid and the 76ers have, they will take any win they can to at least give them some hope regarding a potential redemption story come the 2025-26 campaign.
Joel Embiid receives honor amid 76ers’ brutal 24-25 season
No one expected the 76ers to struggle the way they have during the 2024-25 season; after all, they added Paul George, a perennial All-Star, alongside the core of Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. But Philly never got anything going, with Embiid’s injury woes plaguing him all throughout the season.
Now, Embiid is done for the season amid his ongoing knee troubles, and the 76ers might as well be finished — setting their sights on getting a high draft pick instead. But at the very least, Embiid still received some validation for his decision to suit up for Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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