Joel Embiid chose to play for Team USA over France in this year's Olympics and many French fans are still upset about it.
Embiid received a standing ovation from the Paris crowd during Team USA's Olympic opener against Serbia on Sunday, with fans booing him every time he touched the ball.
Embiid had the opportunity to play for France after the country granted him citizenship in 2022, although he never lived there.
This Philadelphia 76ers star was born in Cameroon and moved to the United States at the age of 16. He has become an American citizen.
“I am very proud and happy with this decision,” Embiid wrote on Twitter last October in a post confirming that he will play for Team USA at the Paris Olympics. “It was not easy. I am blessed to call Cameroon, France, and the USA home. After talking to my family, I knew it had to be Team USA.
“I want to play with my brothers in the league. I want to play for my fans because they have been unbelievable since the day I arrived here. But most of all, I want to honor my son who was born in the US. I want my boy to know that I played for him in my first Olympics.”
Embiid also had the opportunity to play for Cameroon but the team was quickly eliminated from the qualifying games.
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