Embiid Snub Sparks Fierce Response From French Basketball President

With less than a year to go until the 2024 Olympic games, NBA stars are beginning to commit to national teams they will represent at the tournament. One highly sought-after star is the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player, Joel Embiid, who is eligible to play for one of three nations internationally.

Embiid's Eligibility

International eligibility is not as straightforward as playing for the nation in which you were born. Players can become eligible for multiple nations, as FIBA states that players can become eligible through citizenship or via their parents/grandparents originating from the said nation.

For these reasons, Joel Embiid is eligible to play for Cameroon, France, or the United States. However, his French eligibility comes from another unique circumstance. He was born in Cameroon and moved to the United States when he was 16, and he has lived there ever since, which is how he obtained his U.S. citizenship, but his French citizenship was obtained through a clause in the French Civil Code that allows a foreigner to become a French citizen via naturalization if their interest is deemed of exceptional interest.


In fact, many people jumped through great hoops to try and get Embiid his French eligibility because he was expected to represent the French national team during international tournaments. Since then, Embiid has committed to play for Team USA next summer, and many angry French officials are speaking out, calling the whole process a waste of their time.

French Officials Speak out on Embiid

As the hosts of next summer's tournament, the French national team was looking to make a big statement with Embiid. He was set to become the first NBA MVP to represent France. Playing alongside other NBA stars such as Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama, they were hoping to build a squad capable of competing with the USA Superteam recruited by LeBron James.

Embiid was actually slated to play for France in 2022, according to then-general manager Boris Diaw, who said the only reason Embiid didn't was due to a hand injury that rendered him unavailable.


FIBA rules declare that once you are over 17 and play for an international team, you are no longer eligible to represent any other nations. So, if Joel does indeed play for the USA, he will never be allowed to play for France. This has triggered many of the now bitter officials that helped secure Embiid's eligibility.

The president of the French federation himself, Jean-Pierre Siutat, said this at a recent press conference:


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