Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid vividly recalls the exact moment he fell in love with the sport of basketball. According to the Sixers big man himself, the 2009 NBA Finals changed his life, and in that instant, he knew what he wanted to do for the rest of life.
Embiid shared his life-altering experience through his recent writeup for The Players' Tribune.
“The first time I ever watched an NBA game was the 2009 Finals,” he wrote.
“Lakers vs. Magic.”
“Dwight. Pau. Odom. KOBE.”
“I had never seen anything like that. I was watching those dudes shoot like 100% from the floor. Everything was going in. The way they moved, and the athleticism, I thought it was the coolest thing in the world.”
“I had that moment like, I just wanna do that.”
At that time, Embiid was already 15 years old. The Cameroonian lived in a country where basketball was not a popular sport, which is why he turned out to be a very late bloomer. His current stature just proves how rapid his development has been, and how basketball is truly in his blood.
Nonetheless, when as a teenager he first brought up the idea to his parents, they were not exactly supportive.
“I begged my mom and dad. I begged for a year.”
“My dad was like, ‘Nobody in Cameroon plays basketball. You can play volleyball.'”
It's a good thing Embiid's dad changed his mind. Otherwise, he would have deprived us from one of the best and most promising players in the league today.
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