*Update: Embiid commits to Team USA* (France gives Embiid til Oct 10th to commit)

[MarcusBrody]

Absolutely. He was 16 when he left Cameroon, he grew up there and that's his country.

The US has always been a nation of immigrants. There's definitely xenophobia and racism that effects things, but overall, there is the feeling that if you come here and set up your life here, you can be an American. If you come before you finish high school, that's doubly so. It doesn't make you not whatever else you were before, but you can still be considered legit "American".

What is a legit "American" ?

"Legit" meaning that you can be American without an asterisk despite also being a Cameroonian, Indian, Mexican, whatever.

[CBS7]

What if a player doesn't have fond memories of his home country?
What if a player was a minority who was oppressed in his home country?
What if a player doesn't have many or even any ties to his home country? Never went back to visit, doesn't have close family or friends there, etc?

Those upset are probably more upset that its the US, not that he's choosing to play for a country he wasn't born in.

[RoyceDa59]

Team USA gonna be stacked again finally.

It’s almost a lock that final starting line up will be

Curry
Booker
LeBron
Durant
Embiid

[Tacoma]

He’s a **** US Citizen who lives in this country and spend most of his conscious life here. He learned basketball here.

He is the American dream. People should grow up.

Not sure why you're so worked up over this. I think the general sentiment is it would give Cameroon a boost to have him play in the country he was born and raised his first 16 years. He could also recruit Siakam and Koloko to play which won't be enough to medal but it could give rise to more Cameroonians playing basketball which is good for basketball and NBA as well.

As for Team USA, LeBron, Durant, Curry, Tatum, Butler, Booker, AD, Lillard and Kawhi have expressed interest. If half of them show up, they'd win Gold in a cakewalk, with or without Embiid. If having Olympic Gold to put on your resume is of primary importance, this is clearly the path of least resistance that people are referring.

[WiggOuts]

USA basketball is soft AF for doing this. Scared of competition lol

Can’t blame them, they wanted to send Team A+ after sending Team C the last time. LOL

They got Lebron and kd committed. They already had team A+. This is next level bull that shouldn't be allowed

[azcatz11]

I think the issue in the commenta I read is that americans seem to have a different relationship with being a citizen of a country than for instance europeans might have.
To me *your* country is where you grew up and/or where you're parents are from. That means you have a native knoweldge of the language and you've always been immersed into its culture. You might have mutiple passports, but that's not an acquired taste, not where you belong to.
Here it seems that deciding what country to represent is just a business decision, and in my view it completely ruins the whole point of having this kind of competitions.

Absolutely. He was 16 when he left Cameroon, he grew up there and that's his country.

What kinda sick stuff is this? Your country is where you CHOOSE IT TO BE! If you want to change you get to change! You don't choose where you're born. You're just suck there and it takes work to make the choice to leave. Those choices should be respected. Now you can obviously choose to work a job outside your country while still choosing to remain a citizen with plans to return. But you can just as easily make the choice that you've moved and you'll never move back.

Are you a sovereign citizen or something?

[Ryoga Hibiki]

Do you guys trash Hakeem/Ewing for not playing for their birth countries?

yes

How about KAT? Do you trash him for playing for the Dominican Republic?

Towns is tricky, because his mother is Dominican. Not sure how he grew up and what was the relationship with that country.
On the other hand, I am totally fine Banchero chose the USA, is clearly an American guy Italian only by passport.

[azcatz11]

Team USA gonna be stacked again finally.

It’s almost a lock that final starting line up will be

Curry
Booker
LeBron
Durant
Embiid

Will have an asterisk if they win Gold - absolutely meaningless. Hopefully Canada wins it all

[Ryoga Hibiki]

I think the issue in the commenta I read is that americans seem to have a different relationship with being a citizen of a country than for instance europeans might have.
To me *your* country is where you grew up and/or where you're parents are from. That means you have a native knoweldge of the language and you've always been immersed into its culture. You might have mutiple passports, but that's not an acquired taste, not where you belong to.
Here it seems that deciding what country to represent is just a business decision, and in my view it completely ruins the whole point of having this kind of competitions.

Absolutely. He was 16 when he left Cameroon, he grew up there and that's his country.

What kinda sick stuff is this? Your country is where you CHOOSE IT TO BE! If you want to change you get to change! You don't choose where you're born. You're just suck there and it takes work to make the choice to leave. Those choices should be respected. Now you can obviously choose to work a job outside your country while still choosing to remain a citizen with plans to return. But you can just as easily make the choice that you've moved and you'll never move back.

my ancestors would say "quod erat demonstrandum"

[rand]

I think the issue in the commenta I read is that americans seem to have a different relationship with being a citizen of a country than for instance europeans might have.
To me *your* country is where you grew up and/or where you're parents are from. That means you have a native knoweldge of the language and you've always been immersed into its culture. You might have mutiple passports, but that's not an acquired taste, not where you belong to.
Here it seems that deciding what country to represent is just a business decision, and in my view it completely ruins the whole point of having this kind of competitions.

To me "your country" is the one which at the end of the line you are loyal to, the one whose vital interests you would support if forced to make a single choice. This is true whether you were born in the country or you adopted it through immigration. I am opposed to nativism, which entails that your birthplace immutably determines "your country", a philosophy which strongly correlates with racism.

IMO athletes should represent "their country" as understood above. Hence I have no problem with a naturalized citizen immigrant playing for Team USA, but I do take issue with mercenary athletes who simply want to be in the competition and are willing to play for a country other than "theirs" just to be in the game. I feel this way regardless of whether the athlete in question has organic ties to the country (like a parent who was born there), though obviously it would be more absurd if the athlete had no ties to the country.

[LordCovington33]

So USA starting 5:

Embiid
Durant
Tatum
Brown? Butler?
Curry

i think this is why people are pissed, we’ll have another one-sided boring Olympics. LOL

He should have chosen France, for basketball parity reasons.

He should have chosen a country he has never lived in? That makes a lot of sense

[Ryoga Hibiki]

What if a player doesn't have fond memories of his home country?
What if a player was a minority who was oppressed in his home country?
What if a player doesn't have many or even any ties to his home country? Never went back to visit, doesn't have close family or friends there, etc?

Those upset are probably more upset that its the US, not that he's choosing to play for a country he wasn't born in.

is this Joel's case?

[dhsilv2]

Absolutely. He was 16 when he left Cameroon, he grew up there and that's his country.

What kinda sick stuff is this? Your country is where you CHOOSE IT TO BE! If you want to change you get to change! You don't choose where you're born. You're just suck there and it takes work to make the choice to leave. Those choices should be respected. Now you can obviously choose to work a job outside your country while still choosing to remain a citizen with plans to return. But you can just as easily make the choice that you've moved and you'll never move back.

Are you a sovereign citizen or something?

I think that's kinda the opposite of what I'm promoting here. I'm fine with having the government sign you up. I don't think they should be able to say no...

[dhsilv2]

Team USA gonna be stacked again finally.

It’s almost a lock that final starting line up will be

Curry
Booker
LeBron
Durant
Embiid

Will have an asterisk if they win Gold - absolutely meaningless. Hopefully Canada wins it all

Hakeem played for us....

[CS707]

Pretty weak sauce IMO, kind of a low budget version of "The Decision". I'd probably look at it differently had he just always gravitated towards playing for the US but the drama of it all just makes it come off like he's just trying to ensure himself a medal, which isn't what national team comp is about to me. Whateves though.

[druggas]

USA basketball is soft AF for doing this. Scared of competition lol

Can’t blame them, they wanted to send Team A+ after sending Team C the last time. LOL

They got Lebron and kd committed. They already had team A+. This is next level bull that shouldn't be allowed

Sour grapes.

[Dirk]

Just when you thought FIBA couldn't be more pathetic, now Embiid is an American?

[iLLmatic860]

Yall can put that Americans dont have any mvp talk to rest

Welcome my fellow American brotha Embiid!

[Roger Murdock]

He’s a **** US Citizen who lives in this country and spend most of his conscious life here. He learned basketball here.

He is the American dream. People should grow up.

Not sure why you're so worked up over this. I think the general sentiment is it would give Cameroon a boost to have him play in the country he was born and raised his first 16 years. He could also recruit Siakam and Koloko to play which won't be enough to medal but it could give rise to more Cameroonians playing basketball which is good for basketball and NBA as well.

As for Team USA, LeBron, Durant, Curry, Tatum, Butler, Booker, AD, Lillard and Kawhi have expressed interest. If half of them show up, they'd win Gold in a cakewalk, with or without Embiid. If having Olympic Gold to put on your resume is of primary importance, this is clearly the path of least resistance that people are referring.

Embiid is mentally weak and has been surrounded by mentally weak players, coaches, and executives his entire career. This is his opportunity to actually surround himself with good influences and I’m proud of him for taking a positive step towards bettering his career.

Spicy P is a goof ball with his own issues and nobody else on Cameroon is an impact guy. This is an actual opportunity for him to develop as a leader. Barkley, LeBron, Wade, Bosh, etc

Many hall of famers leadership blossomed playing for team USA. It’s good for Embiid to get a fair shake.

[oversteerdawg]

Ignoring the opportunity to get an Olympic Gold Medal (which is a huge thing to ignore as an athlete), maybe, just maybe, Joel is grateful for the generational wealth and opportunity that the USA has provided him and his family. It's easy to take it for granted as a lifelong American.