76ers front office’s bizarre reaction to recent fiasco is a big slap to Embiid

Dominant in the newsstands nowadays is the most recent fiasco involving Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid and a member of the media engaging in a shoving match after the team’s latest loss on Saturday night.

The incident was initially met with massive shock thanks to some misleading reporting, but as the full details of the situation were bared, the public sentiment was undeniably favorable to Embiid as many felt that his actions were justified given the involved writer, Marcus Hayes’ unethical comments on a recent article.

Still, to preserve the optics of the situation, the expectation is that the NBA will hand down a penalty of some sort to Embiid. The 76ers organization has not dished out a solid response to the issue yet, but this latest reveal by Hayes himself is sure to mystify fans altogether.

76ers front office gives deflating reaction to the Joel Embiid kerfuffle

After Embiid was separated from Hayes, the latter was purportedly escorted to a meeting with 76ers team president Daryl Morey and general manager Elton Brand. Hayes alleged that both Morey and Brand apologized for the incident, expressed regret about what had transpired, and asked him for his version of events to which they agreed that Embiid’s actions were unacceptable.

It remains to be seen whether Hayes’ claims hold water, especially given that his reputation after the incident sheds his credibility, but if found to be true, then this is one hell of a slap to Embiid who, by all reasons and through semantics, had a very justifiable reason to do what he did, no matter how detrimental it could be optics-wise.

Morey and Brand’s alleged dismay over Embiid’s actuations, if true, is displaced by a wide reach. There was more than sufficient provocation from Hayes, a notorious and chronic polarizer as a sports columnist. If anything, they should have been at the forefront of condemning the media man’s triggering article, as well as the previous ones that breezed through the seasons.

After all, Philadelphia owes it to Joel Embiid to protect him at this point, especially with the situation calling for it. The superstar has been at the center of derision among fans and pundits alike for quite some time now, and the front office has not really been a proactive steward in defense of its centerpiece.

The blame is still on Hayes, just to be clear. However, the Philadelphia 76ers front office should also endeavor to protect its franchise player especially when he’s in the right and refrain from honoring the formalities to a person who deserves none of it.