Joel Embiid is upset with leaked report of Tyrese Maxey holding him accountable

Joel Embiid is upset with leaked report of Tyrese Maxey holding him accountable

Earlier this week, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported that the Philadelphia 76ers had a team meeting following their 17-point loss to the Miami Heat Monday evening. The biggest detail of that meeting that ascending star Tyrese Maxey called out one-time MVP Joel Embiid, the face of the franchise, for allegedly being late “to everything.”

“Maxey and Embiid have a close friendship and a history of holding each other accountable, according to those around the team,” Charania wrote. “Maxey is highly regarded as a young leader by many in the organization and those around the team were not surprised that he spoke up Monday.”

Lo and behold, Embiid wasn’t happy with this report being leaked.

“Whoever leaked that is a real piece of s—,” Embiid said, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic. “We talked about a lot of things. I don’t want to get into detail. But that whole thing, that part of it, took probably 40 seconds. But it’s Joel Embiid, so things will always get blown out of proportion. It’s whatever, though. I’ll take it. I’m the reason for everything, so I guess I’ll take the blame for everything.

“There was nothing malicious being said. I like when people are telling me when I’m not doing good and when I need to be better. That part of it (tardiness) probably happened once or twice when I wasn’t playing. So I need to be better. I need to be perfect. I need to be on point, which I’m going to do.”

Embiid is most concerned about the wrong things. Sure, the locker room environment may not be as closed today as it was 15-20 years when social media was nonexistent. Everything is public nowadays, and that’s uncomfortable for some people. I understand that. Though instead of being mad at who leaked it, the crux of the issue is more important.

Embiid stated that the “negativity keeps following” him, but it doesn’t appear without fault if the team’s leader isn’t showing up to work on time. You’re the face of the franchise–you have to act like it. There can’t be any more excuses.

It’s Time To Acknowledge Joel Embiid Isn’t A Winning Player

All that said, he didn’t necessarily dispute that the rumors of the meeting, nor Maxey’s argument, weren’t true–so there’s no reason to worry about that. Accountability is important, and it’s becoming more clear as the days go by that Philadelphia doesn’t have it, let alone having a culture. That’s an issue for any team-building structure, especially if the primary goal is to win a championship.

What do you think about the 76ers’ messy situation? Let us know in the comments!

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