Joel the “Troll” is still living up to his nickname.
Joel Embiid didn’t need many parting words for his former 76ers teammate Ben Simmons at a press conference after Friday night’s 100-87 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Although the super shady meme Joel tweeted already said more than a thousand words, according to Bleacher Report, his explanation was a troll within a troll.
When it was announced that Simmons would be traded for the Brooklyn Nets’ James Harden, Joel posted this picture without comment.
When asked about why posted the viral tweet, Joel hilariously played it straight.
“Honestly, I don’t know what the tweet was about. I just tweeted a random person,” he said with a smile. “I just saw the picture on the internet. I thought he was well-dressed, he had a nice suit on, good-looking. He had some swag, I thought it was a good picture.”
To the untrained eye, it’s just a random man in shades and a suit but it’s been circulating the internet so long that Joel’s post went viral without the original caption that made it so iconic:
“I Stopped By One Of My Biggest Haters Funeral Today 🙏 Just To Make Sure That N**ga Was Dead.#RipBozo #DieHatersDie”
Although the center laughed off the viral tweet, he pulled no punches in his harsh reflections on Simmons’ time with the Sixers.
“Obviously, we didn’t get it done as far as winning in the playoffs, but you look the history of being on the court, what we did in the regular season, we were dominant. So it’s unfortunate that winning was not the biggest factor. It’s unfortunate that, for him, having his own team and, I guess, being the star, was more of his priorities. I always thought that everything was great, the fit was great, but unfortunately Ben thought that it wasn’t.”
When questioned if he’s finally happy about the resolution with Simmons, he sounded ready to leave the beef with Ben dead and buried.
“Yeah, I’m happy that I’m not going to be answering any more questions about that subject. It’s good that, not just for me, but my teammates, the whole organization. The whole year, it was pretty annoying with the whole situation, but I’m glad that everybody has moved on. I wish everybody the best in whatever they want to accomplish, but I’m focused on winning games here and trying to win a championship.”
Do you think the Sixers have what it takes to go all the way with Harden on the roster or will Embiid need another shady shovel?