Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts against the Boston Celtics during the first quarter in game seven of the 2023 NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Semifinals at TD Garden on May 14, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. Adam Glanzman/Getty Images/AFP
Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has given fans a jolt with an interview gaining steam on social media on Monday discussing his desire to win an NBA title “in Philly or anywhere else.”
The big man from Cameroon broke through for a first NBA Most Valuable Player award last season, his eighth with the 76ers.
But Philadelphia was eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the NBA playoffs, later sacking coach Doc Rivers and hiring former Toronto coach Nick Nurse.
“I just want to win a championship. Whatever it takes,” Embiid said in an interview with LeBron James’s longtime friend and business partner Maverick Carter that occurred on Thursday at the Uninterrupted Sports Film Festival.
“I don’t know where that’s going to be, whether it’s in Philly or anywhere else, I just want to have a chance to accomplish that. I want to see what it feels like to win that first one, and then you can think about the next one.
“It’s not easy, but it takes more than one or two, three guys. You’ve got to have good people around you, and myself, every single day, I work hard to be at that level so I can make it happen. So, every single day, I’m working towards that.”
By Monday, the interview was popping up on social media sites alongside speculation that it signaled Embiid could soon be seeking to force a trade.
The 76ers are already reportedly pursuing options for trading All-Star guard James Harden, who opted into this $35.6 million contract for next season so that the team could work out a deal with another team.
Embiid, who signed a four-year, $213 million contract extension in 2021 that runs through 2027, said last month that he hoped Harden might change his mind and decide to stay.