Joel Embiid Shoots down Speculation of Being Upset with Jimmy Butler

Getty Images Philadelphia 76ers Joel Embiid pumps the crowd up.

All is well in the city of Philadelphia for the Sixers. After having a ton of reports come out over the last few days regarding Joel Embiid and the Jimmy Butler trade, turns out that Embiid’s comments were taken out of context by the local media after everything almost went south for a second. Man, everybody couldn’t wait for this – a Jimmy Butler inspired drama out of the locker room since he has been traded from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Unfortunately for those who have been expecting it though, it’s not going to happen.

Not now, at least. Right now, the Sixers locker room is still intact. Joel Embiid is okay. He is a moody guy, especially when he isn’t performing to his own standard. We’ve seen Embiid’s mood swings over the last two years when he feels like he’s being held back, so this definitely isn’t anything new. The only difference this time around was that Embiid’s lack of production wasn’t based on a minutes restriction due to injury. Instead, it was based on his new role since Jimmy Butler has been on the team.

In the eyes of Embiid, his new role is not setting him up for success. While that’s debatable – most would agree that yes, Embiid has taken a step back since Butler joined the team. However, that doesn’t mean that Embiid is ready to get angry about the trade affecting him personally. Especially when the Sixers have won a lot more than they have lost since Butler joined the roster. There’s no problem between the two superstars. And just in case nobody believes it, Embiid made sure to clear up his comments on Monday night after the Sixers defeated the Detroit Pistons at home.

How Did This All Get Started?

First off, let’s take a step back and remember how this all started. After a disappointing loss against the Eastern Conference’s top dog, the Toronto Raptors, Embiid displayed frustration and lack of interest in the locker room after the game. It was visibly a lousy game by the Sixers center, which eventually led to poor effort. As expected, Embiid would make some comments and eventually everything was taken out of context.

“I haven’t been myself lately, “I think it’s mainly because of the way I’ve been used, which is I’m being used as a spacer, I guess, a stretch five, which I’m only shooting [29] percent” from three-point range. “But it seems like the past couple games, like with the way I play, our setup, [Brown] always has me starting on the perimeter … and it just really frustrates me. My body feels great, and it’s just I haven’t been playing well.”

Naturally, these quotes turned into Embiid being upset about Jimmy Butler joining the team. It’s incredible, isn’t it? Well, just as many expected, it turns out that Embiid and Butler are not going to be having a locker room beef anytime soon. Because not only did Butler respond to Embiid’s comments by saying that he understands what he meant, but Embiid also cleared everything up by stating that his comments were taken out of context.

Embiid Explains What He Meant by His Comments

After Monday night’s win against the Pistons, Embiid was crowded with reporters back in the locker room. He knew what to expect since this was his first game back since the whole mix-up of his postgame comments. As supposed, Embiid felt the need to clear up his remarks and downgraded his frustrations to being nothing more than just disappointed in himself through his new role.

“That was just me frustrated with the way I was playing,” Embiid said. “I know everybody took it out of context. I love everybody. I love my teammates. I love my coaching staff. (It was) me being frustrated because I hold myself to a really high standard played a role in whatever that was said.”

As reported by Bucks County Courier Times Sixers writer, Tom Moore, Embiid is just hard on himself. Having three-straight games of producing under 20 points wasn’t ideal for himself, and he felt like he needed to address that. Unfortunately, it came off as the wrong idea. Fortunately, though, it looks like Embiid is getting back to his element after a couple of days off. On Monday night against Detroit, Embiid dropped 24 points, with eight rebounds, and three assists. While he still has room for improvement, he’s definitley back on the right track after Monday nights stat line looked a bit normalized.