Joel Embiid Claimed It Is “Hard to Bully” Team USA 12 Days Before Doubting 39-Year-Old LeBron James’ Dominance

Joel Embiid has faced a lot of hate after his performances in the exhibition games. The Sixer knows how to draw shooting fouls, or at least how it works in the league. However, international basketball is different. The court is smaller in size, the rules are quite different, and the opponents are tougher to go up against to some extent. And of course, drawing fouls isn’t so easy. Considering the same, the former MVP hasn’t really adapted well. But on the flip side, the Cameroonian had a lot of faith in this squad.

During the Team USA camp in Vegas, Embiid opened up about teaming up with future Hall of Famers. “Everybody knows it’s hard to bully me, and it’s hard to bully those other guys. I think we’ve got enough size and basketball IQ. Honestly, I’m just excited to get the ball in the post and having Steph, ‘Bron cutting,” Embiid told a small group of reporters during a presser. On the contrary, what’s weird is that just two weeks later, his brutal re-take on veterans in the national roster had the internet outraged.

The Process shockingly went on to explain that King James was not what he used to be. “The LeBron now is not the LeBron that was a couple of years ago. So it’s a big difference. Everybody would also tell you, and you can see for yourself, the athletic LeBron, dominant that he was a couple of years ago, is not the same that he is now.”

“I think people get fooled by the names on paper. But those names have been built throughout their career, and now they’re older. They’re not what they used to be,” Embiid concluded. All these takes are quite unexpected, considering he is on the same team. Many believe the squad to be the Dream Team 2.0, but then again, one of the team members does not fully trust the veterans. Yes, James isn’t as athletic, but still gives the same energy on the floor.

Curry, on the other hand, is still the best shooter in the league and KD is still a lethal scorer from the mid-range. Their talents haven’t just disappeared but instead have taken a backseat with all the top younger players in the squad hogging the limelight. Of course, when the time comes, these guys will be as impactful as it gets.

So far, Team USA has done well as a collective in the exhibition games, after a slow start, but the actual test will be against Germany. Joel Embiid, the Big 3 candidate in Steve Kerr’s list, has a lot to prove.

Will the coaching staff look to replace Joel Embiid?

The better options for Embiid’s replacement would certainly be either ANT or AD. Now, it is up to Kerr’s rotations on who gets to play in place of Embiid, but with Steph, LeBron, KD, AD, and ANT, the squad would quite literally dominate on the offensive end. There are other possible rotations as well, but this may be the one to look out for. Other than that, there are guys like Booker, Haliburton, and Holiday who can gel together for second-quarter subs.

While the Olympics are just a week away, the coaching staff will have to finalize the starting lineups. “Right now we’re just experimenting, so we’re looking at different combinations,” the head coach had admitted after narrowly winning the Australia game.

For Embiid, he looks out of shape and he’s been slowing the flow when he’s on the floor, on the other hand, AD’s double-double in each game while coming off the bench has certainly been the answer to increase the pace while being as good defensively.

In the most recent game against South Sudan which required a King James layup to pinch the 101-100 scoreboard in their favor, the ‘aging’ LeBron scored 23 points along with 6 rebounds and assists each, going 9-13 from the field and 2-3 from deep range. On the other hand, Anthony Davis pulled off a double-double despite not starting the game with 15 points and 11 rebounds. And Joel Embiid was third on the scoring list with 14 points.

So, what are your thoughts on Embiid as a starter? Do you think that he should be replaced? Let us know in the comments.