When Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid decided to join Team USA, it came as a shock. The expectation was for him to round out a star-studded French roster that included San Antonio Spurs forward-center Victor Wembanyama and Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert. It was thought that France’s national team would start all three of them.
France had planned to start Victor Wembanyama at small forward alongside Joel Embiid and Rudy Gobert before Embiid joined Team USA, per @TheAthletic
Imagine this frontline 🤯
(Via https://t.co/94q6lxbOID) pic.twitter.com/c76I1CL5f4
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 20, 2024
However, Team USA was hoping to wash away the taste of a seventh-place 2023 FIBA World Cup finish. As a result, they were looking for as much talent as they could get.
Do Joel Embiid’s Team USA-France-Cameroon Comments Add Up?
Speaking about his decision to join Team USA over France, the 2023 NBA MVP says he “kind of felt rushed…”
“…I wanted to take as much time as possible and it didn’t help that France put an ultimatum on when the decision had to be made,” Embiid tells The New York Times’ David Marchese.
He then delves into a layered thought process that also makes note of his decision not to play for his home country. The 30-year-old was born in Yaoundé, Cameroon, moving to the United States when he was 16.
“I didn’t know [the timeline]. I saw it on Twitter and I was like woah, where did this come from?… One thing that was always known was that Cameroon is the first choice. And if they qualify, I’m playing for my home country because that’s my dream to play in the Olympics. One thing that was kind of bothering me a lot was the relationship between France and Cameroon and African countries in general, historically…
“Even right now, there are a lot of things going on (in Africa), there’s a lot of pushback of basically kicking out the French because there have been so many years of oppression,” Embiid says of not playing for France.
“That was my mindset because I knew it would be hard,” he continues. “With my family being in Cameroon, I don’t want to put them through any of that stuff. I want them to be safe, and the relationship between France and Cameroon or Africa in general is just not good.”
He’s Right, You Know
Embiid’s reasoning for playing for Team USA rather than France has plenty of merit in terms of morality.
Like many African countries, Cameroon had to gain independence from France. This was achieved in Jan. 1960. However, France was unwilling to accept a clean break with Cameroon, even going so far as to dissolve a political party intent on economic emancipation. As a result, Cameroon had only one legal political party for the next 30 years.
This a poor foundation for a developing country, as it breeds corruption and incompetence. That being said, this is an issue many of the African countries who were previously colonized face. In any case, though Cameroon eventually returned to multiparty politics, financial mismanagement stifled meaningful growth.
Now, several coups have taken place in Africa’s Francophone countries, leaders seeking to sever all ties with their former administrators.
Yet, this hasn’t served them well either. Not only does it add to the political instability, areas that fall under martial law often become war zones. Instead of empowering the youth and planning for sustainable success, countries like Cameroon are in turmoil. To make matters worse, the French are accused of prioritizing loyalists and attempting to destabilize governments that want to wrestle themselves from their grip.
As Embiid says, the relationship between France and Africa isn’t great, currently or historically.
Riddle Me This
Embiid still applied for French citizenship, and it was granted in the summer of 2022. He was flirting with joining France’s national team up until they gave him a deadline. If France’s history with Africa was so much of a factor in his decision, how did it even get to that point?
Another question worth asking is why didn’t he try to help Cameroon try to reach the Olympics?
Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam, New Orleans Pelicans center Yves Missi, and Toronto Raptors forward-center Ulrich Chomche were all included on their pre-Olympic roster. If a former MVP joined the group, their NBA-heavy frontcourt rotation could have made noise. To that point, if Carlik Jones and Jose Alvarado can lead South Sudan and Puerto Rico to the Olympics, he should be able to.
To be frank, it seems like Embiid wasn’t all-in on playing for Cameroon. Again, his rationale for picking Team USA over France makes some sense. However, Embiid likely chose to play for USA Basketball because of the chance to join a legendary team and win a gold medal.
After all, the U.S. doesn’t have a great history with Africa either. If Embiid really shunned France because of his national pride, another country synonymous with the Transatlantic Slave Trade isn’t really a better option.
