Team USA was filled with a bunch of NBA stars but it obviously wasn’t enough.
They once again failed to earn a medal in the FIBA Basketball World Cup and now people are wondering what lies ahead.
The 2024 Olympics are less than a year away and fans are demanding that something be done so they win gold in Paris.
In his latest piece for Sports Illustrated, analyst Chris Mannix said that Team USA needs one player in particular: Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers.
“The kind of versatile, switchable roster that succeeds in the NBA doesn’t work as well in FIBA tournaments. And even if the 2024 roster features some 2020 returnees—Bam Adebayo could play—Team USA still needs to beef up.
It needs Joe Embiid”
via @SIChrisMannix for @SInow https://t.co/baqJ9N11Qo pic.twitter.com/vdh1q8RNPi
— Dru (@dru_star) September 11, 2023
The reigning NBA MVP checks a lot of boxes for the team and would bring an awful lot to the roster.
Not only can Embiid score incredibly well (33.1 points per game last season) but he’s also a big man at seven-feet tall.
Size is a major problem for Team USA and that became apparent during the World Cup.
Embiid would score plenty and provide them with power and size.
He is the sort of no-brainer choice that makes perfect sense for the team.
Embiid holds citizenship in the United States and France and both countries will be fighting hard to acquire him.
He has sat out of many offseason tournaments because he is understandably afraid of being injured and missing the regular season.
But will America or France convince him to play?
Those two teams are the most feared throughout the global basketball community.
In fact, it was America and France that fought hard for the gold medal in the last Olympics.
Embiid will have to make a choice sometime during the new season.
Will he play alongside French players like Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama in the Olympics?
Or will he suit up with the American stars hoping to earn a fifth consecutive gold medal?
NEXT: Nick Nurse Shares His Expectations For Joel Embiid
