Philadelphia 76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid shared his opposition to the NBA's “bubble” idea on Tuesday. Embiid, 26, told reporters he's “not a big fan” of the proposal, which outlines 22 franchises competing starting on July 30 in Orlando, Florida.
Per NBC Sports Philadelphia's Serena Winters, via Jason Owens in Yahoo Sports:
“I hated the idea … I feel like, with everything that has been going on, it’s unfortunate what’s been going on in the world. …
“All I want to be is, you know, stay healthy and stay safe, keep the people around me safe. I want to make sure I’m able to live for a long time and not have any sort of, I don’t know, consequences in the future.”
Embiid missed a string of games before returning for the Sixers in what proved to be their final game at the time of the NBA's coronavirus-forced hiatus in mid March. The three-time All-Star center, along with fellow star point-forward Ben Simmons, led Philly to two straight playoff berths in the past two years — both of which led to second-round exits — after a six-year postseason drought.
Embiid, Simmons and the Sixers are trying to rectify a last-second Game 7 lost to the eventual-champion Toronto Raptors in the 2019 playoffs. However, to do that, Embiid and the team must finish the regular season in eight games in Orlando before entering the postseason, also to be held in the “bubble” in central Florida in spite of rising COVID-19 cases in the state.
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