Rich Paul shuts down Joel Embiid lazy narrative

On the latest edition of the Game Over podcast with Max Kellerman, Rich Paul refuted the notion that Joel Embiid has a poor work ethic. Kellerman brought up a rumor about Embiid’s work ethic and implied that LeBron James could potentially help him, as they are now teammates on the Philadelphia 76ers.

“Embiid, when he was on the Olympic team… I thought this was super interesting. Scal was talking about when the best players get together, everyone’s got the cars and the watches and the money. The way they really compete and impress each other is by who works the hardest. And that was not Embiid at all. It was the opposite for Embiid, according to Scal, what he was hearing. Isn’t that a problem for the Sixers? Or does LeBron get on and… does LeBron help?”

Paul pushed back on that characterization, saying everything he’s heard about Embiid this summer has been positive.

“No, I’ve heard nothing but great things about Joel this summer. I heard he’s in the best shape he’s been in. He’s been healthy all summer. So what Scal is saying, normally, yeah, that is the case. I’ve been around a ton of USA teams. So yeah, but I don’t think so in this case.”

Paul’s characterization of Embiid and specifically the work he’s done over the summer was echoed by 76ers general manager Mike Gansey during a July interview with 97.5 The Fanatic.