Joel Embiid Ready to 'Chop' French Fans

Despite a rough start, Joel Embiid's fourth-quarter performance vs. Serbia catapulted  Team USA to a top-of-the-world feeling. Against his NBA rival, Nikola Jokic, Embiid provided Team USA with a myriad of offensive moves. Embiid finally had a signature Olympic game for Team USA, from emphatic dunks to mid-range shots and three-point conversions. Team USA's starting center finished with 19 points.

The 17-point comeback wouldn't have happened without Embiid. Despite Embiid's performance, the Parisian fans only remember the 2023 NBA MVP skipping their precious nation to play for the US. Embiid can't escape the boos, but to this point, the Philadelphia 76ers star is accustomed to such treatment.

Team USA's starting center addressed the inevitable jeers from the bitter but excited fans.

"They're going to boo me. I'm going to go back at them and tell 'em to suck it. And so it's going to be fun," Embiid said as he looks forward to Team USA's gold medal match against France.

Embiid's fascination with WWE's stable D-Generation X isn't anything new. The x-chops to the crotch is something he typically performs after an and-one shot. Most notably, the NBA fined Embiid $35,000 in October of 2023 for the "suck it" taunt against the Portland Trail Blazers.

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While Embiid will likely lay off the edgy taunts, as FIBA officials don't put up with the extra shenanigans as NBA refs, in a high-pressured game, Embiid will inevitably respond to the crowd's jeers.

Team USA plays France for the gold medal on Aug. 10 at 3:30 PM Eastern Time.