At this moment, Joel Embiid is the front-runner to win the 2022-2023 NBA MVP award. As all fans will be aware by now, Embiid has been playing at an incredible level this season. Alongside James Harden, he has carried the Philadelphia 76ers to hold one of the best records in the Eastern Conference. At the moment, the 76ers hold a record of 52 wins and 28 losses, giving them the 3rd spot.
There is no denying that Embiid deserves most of the credit for the success his team has been seeing. He is a talent like no other and can do things on the court that NBA fans never thought a player of that size should be capable of doing. Joel is one among many rising NBA stars with international origins. That said, let us take a closer look at Embiid’s ethnicity and nationality.
Joel Embiid was born in Cameroon but holds both USA and French passports
It might interest some NBA fans to know about the background and early life of the 76ers star. Embiid was born in Yaoundé, a city in Cameroon, located in Western Africa. He was born to Thomas and Christine Embiid. Joel was initially more interested in playing sports like football and volleyball. He discovered his flair and talent for the sport when he was 15 years old.
He attended college in Kansas and played 28 games there. Then, Embiid declared for the NBA Draft. Unfortunately, he suffered multiple injuries over the next few years, which would inevitably cripple the start of a very impressive career.
Embiid, Luka, Giannis, and Jokic are considered by many to be some of the best NBA players in the world at the moment. However, none of them are American, which leads us to believe that the globalization of the league has brought in even more talent than expected. Joel is one of many such players and is quite proud of his roots and culture.