Goudelock wrote:Sealab2024 wrote:This does not improve my opinion of him and honestly I think it's a bad message to send. I get it, you experienced some bad trauma and have regrets. I don't mean to be crass but go ahead and join the rest of us in this thing we call life. What you can't do is emotionally shut down forever and refuse to process your experiences. That leaves you a prisoner of your past and will poison anything you try to do.
I feel for you Joel, I really do. I lost a very close cousin to a drunk driver in my teens so I do understand. But as an adult and especially as a man, you have to find your way through that stuff one way or another.
That's what I took away from the article too, and because this wasn't just some fluff piece, I think that's the logical takeaway. He had some trauma and terrible experiences, but he also has not handled it remotely well and has some very real flaws as a person.
It's a really depressing read. I hope Embiid stays committed to therapy and finds some ways to shed the same, and not spiral so deeply and constantly on his misfortunes.
He reminds me of Shaq. A young, insecure giant is suddenly thrust into a world of being a celebrity athlete, and that insecurity grows into a troubled, sometimes dark ego. Shaq had much better fortune, though. His injuries were minor, he got to be a healthy superstar from day 1, and ascend to an MVP-level player with way less setbacks than Embiid. (Not to say Shaq didn't have anything bad happen to him. He absolutely has faced difficulty in his life and career.) Both are kind of big kids who want praise and acceptance. Shaq was able to get his, while Embiid has had to deal with so much criticism from NBA fans.
I don't want to go too hard at the Sixers or their fanbase here, but how many young stars do they need to see suffer through career altering mental health difficulties before they start questioning their identity as the tough love fan base. It's getting a little crazy that the fanbase that is famous for booing their own players, and being hyper critical of them in times of failure, has now seen a whole generation of mega talents deal with massive mental health issues as the fanbase openly questions the severity of their physical injuries. Markell Fultz's shoulders and thoracic outlet syndrome, Ben Simmons lower back, and Embiid's everything. Other teams face worse injuries (sorry, New Orleans) but if you struggle in Phili... boy does it ever seem to go to a dark place quickly. It hasn't just been the Phili fanbase, the general NBA fanbase has been so tough on the Sixers stars, but I'd like to see Phili fans have their players back and defend them from the rest of us, rather than be the loudest critics.
