Even the throes of the NBA offseason will not prevent New York Knicks fans from gleefully cursing Joel Embiid’s name.
Knicks players Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, who co-host a podcast for Playmaker entitled “The Roommates Show,” held a live event for fans over the weekend to celebrate the first season of their podcast. The event took place in Central Park, N.Y. and featured a lot of big-name local guests (including Mikal Bridges, Stephon Marbury, and even Jon Stewart).
But perhaps the most memorable moment of the evening came when Knicks fans broke out into an impromptu chant targeting the Philadelphia 76ers star Embiid. In what eventually grew into a deafening and united chorus, the fans began yelling the unmistakable “F–k Embiid! F–k Embiid!”
Here is the video of the moment posted by the official X page of “The Roommates Show” (but obviously beware of the bad language).
“F**K EMBIID” chants in Central Park pic.twitter.com/IWENPaMsIn
— Roommates Show (@Roommates__Show) September 8, 2024
The former NBA MVP Embiid is unpopular with many rival fanbases but especially so with Knicks fans. When the Knicks and 76ers met in the first round of the playoffs last season, Embiid had a number of supposed cheap shots against New York’s players. As a result, he was targeted ruthlessly by Knicks fans, many of whom even took over the 76ers’ own arena to chant against Embiid.
The Knicks would go on to win that series in six games. But Embiid and the 76ers will get a shot at revenge right away next season (the two teams meet again in Philadelphia on Nov. 12). While there are still a couple months left to go before that game, the Knicks faithful are clearly ready to continue the battle right now.
