Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid is one of the most dominant players in the NBA when he takes the court. The 30-year-old is a seven-time All-Star, a five-time All-NBA selection, a two-time scoring champion, and a three-time All-Defensive selection. Perhaps most importantly, however, is a perennial MVP candidate and won the award for the first time in his career in 2023.
Despite his on-court dominance, there are discussions about the 76ers potentially moving on from him down the line because of his injury concerns. However, even if he does get traded at some point, do not expect Embiid to end up with the Indiana Pacers.
Joel Embiid 'would rather retire' than join the Pacers
Last summer, Embiid represented Team USA during the 2024 Paris Olympics. The big man helped Team USA win a gold medal alongside Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton.
Recently, Netflix released a six-part docuseries titled Court of Gold that dives into last year's Olympics, centered around Team USA's gold medal run. Unfortunately for the Pacers, it did not take long for them to catch a stray.
Early in the first episode, Haliburton tried to recruit Embiid to Indiana (seemingly as a joke). However, the 76ers big man was quick to turn Haliburton down, even going as far as to say he would rather call it a career than go to Indiana.
Haliburton: "You gonna come to Indy?"
Embiid: "I might wanna come to Indy."
Haliburton: "Come on. Make it happen!"
Embiid: "Sike! Never in my life. I would rather retire."
Less than a year later, Embiid's joke has already started to age poorly.
Over halfway through the regular season, the 76ers are 20-34 and own the No. 11 seed in the East. Despite having high expectations, the 76ers might miss the postseason altogether this year. Furthermore, Embiid has only appeared in 17 games this season due to a knee injury.
As for the Pacers, they are 30-23 and own the No. 4 seed in the East. After their Eastern Conference Finals run last year, the Pacers are well-equipped to make another deep playoff run this season.
What really stands out, however, is how different the teams' outlooks are for the future. While the 76ers are not in a good position to compete in the future (especially given the uncertainty of Paul George and Embiid's injuries), the Pacers have a young team that should help them remain near the top for the long haul.
Ultimately, it is clear that Embiid and Haliburton were just messing with each other. However, because of how the 76ers' season looks so far, Indiana should not seem that bad in Embiid's eyes, especially given that they are far more likely to win a championship this season than Philadelphia is.
Watch Court of Gold only on Netflix.