Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has every right to speak his mind and be concerned about his and other players’ safety in the NBA restart at Disney World.
Earlier this week, in a call with the media, he was honest about how he felt about the bubble in Orlando.
“I hated the idea,” he said. “To me, all I want is to stay healthy and stay safe, keep the people around me safe. I want to make sure I’m able to live for a long time and not have any sort of, I don’t know, consequences in the future, from this if I were to be in a situation of getting the virus.”
Even though he’s worried and doesn’t trust others to follow safety protocols, he did say, “I’m going to do my job.”
Joel Embiid on concerns going into Orlando:
“I’m not a big fan of the idea. But then again, I’m going to do my job. I’m not going to let the city down. I’m going to represent my city, my family, my teammates – that’s what I’ve always done.” #Sixershttps://t.co/v7pIJGfGIH pic.twitter.com/1OcTptsRJe
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) July 7, 2020
That’s completely understandable. But ex-NBA player, now-ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins ripped Embiid in a First Take segment:
Kendrick Perkins goes off on Joel Embiid for his fear of catching COVID-19 in the NBA bubble. Does Perkins have a point? (Via @FirstTake) pic.twitter.com/zml57E0NI1
— The Undefeated (@TheUndefeated) July 8, 2020
“Do you want to hoop or not? None of the other contenders complained! … I don’t want to hear all that. To me, this is just an excuse. If they get knocked out, this is gonna be an excuse because their superstar was halfway in, his mental wasn’t there. I’m complaining, I don’t like the idea. Man, go down there and hoop! I ain’t trying to hear that, man. That’s a billion-dollar bubble.”
As so many people have said, there’s so much we don’t know about the coronavirus. We do know that for some, even young, in-shape athletes like Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, the virus isn’t anything to scoff at. And as Embiid pointed out, what about long-term ramifications for those who get it? We don’t know what those are. It’s an absolutely frightening thought, and expressing concern about it while needing to trust a giant group of people to follow guidelines to keep everyone safe doesn’t show mental weakness. Embiid even said despite all of those concerns, he’s going to play and do his job.
Perkins tried to clarify his comments Wednesday night:
Conversation was about him not liking the idea of the Bubble…the NBA gave him an option to play? He chose to play so stop with all the complaining. It’s all I’m saying. Never once that we talk about Black Lives Matter!!! Carry on!
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) July 9, 2020
Fellow ESPN analyst Jay Williams called out Perkins:
Unfortunately…this video lacks empathy. https://t.co/ZuynbMFaB1
— Jay Williams (@RealJayWilliams) July 9, 2020
You got my number homeboy…you know exactly what I was saying and meant. The question was do you have Sympathy for Embiid? I said no because the league gave everybody an option…and he decided to go play so stop complaining about it and go hoop.
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) July 9, 2020
In unprecedented and uncertain times, concentrating all your mental and physical energy on a championship isn’t possible. I’m willing to bet a lot that Embiid isn’t the only player or NBA franchise employee worried about his or her safety. He’s giving voice to them all and should be applauded and supported for his honesty.
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