Joel Embiid’s MVP season is in serious jeopardy. Despite being the clear frontrunner in this year’s MVP race, Embiid might lose out on becoming back-to-back MVP due to a technicality. According to the new NBA rule, a player will only be eligible for regular season awards if he has played 20+ minutes in at least 65 games this season. Unfortunately, Embiid’s latest meniscus injury might cause him to miss the eligibility criteria.

Frustrated by Joel Embiid’s bad luck, LeBron James called out the media for badmouthing Embiid for missing games due to injury. Veteran analyst Stephen A. Smith spoke out on the media’s behalf and initiated a beef with King James in the Joel Embiid argument.

LeBron James blamed the media for Joel Embiid’s meniscus injury and claimed no one had yet apologized to the reigning MVP on TV or their “Dumba** podcast”. Stephen A. Smith addressed LeBron’s tweets on The Stephen A. Smith Show. He admitted to being one of the media personnel who called out several star players for load management. Stephen A. took offense to LeBron’s “podcast” comment and responded by bringing up his podcast, “We saw The Shop. Nobody called that a dumba** show. Why don’t you watch your mouth?”

Stephen A. Smith then went on to call out LeBron for lying in his tweets. “Why’re you lying? Who talked about Joel Embiid and questioned his injury?” the analyst asked King James.

Stephen A. reminded LeBron and the rest of the world that Joel Embiid has been injury-prone throughout his career. He missed the first two seasons of his career due to a knee injury. So, it did not shock anyone when he injured his knee again during the Warriors game. However, what happened in Denver made the media question the extent of Embiid’s injury.

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Joel Embiid’s Denver decision in question

Stephen A. Smith made it clear that no one from the media is questioning the legitimacy of Joel Embiid’s knee injury. What took everyone by surprise was Embiid’s decision to sit out the game against Nikola Jokic and Co. last Saturday. Embiid was not listed on the Sixers’ injury report going into the game. He was seen working out and shooting around before the game but was ruled out of the highly anticipated clash minutes before the jump ball.

That raised questions about whether Embiid was actually injured or he was avoiding the matchup against the defending champions. Stephen A. Smith also took a shot at LeBron for doing a similar thing against the Boston Celtics last night. He questioned how LeBron was ready to play against the Knicks tomorrow and unable to play just two days prior. Even though Stephen A. Smith’s response to LeBron was harsh, it portrayed the media’s side of the story.

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