No matter how much Joel Embiid put effort into the Philadelphia 76ers, the team could not pass the playoff troubles. It has been almost a decade since he got drafted by the Sixers as the 3rd overall first-round pick, and the Sixers have not been able to conquer their post-season yet. Last season, it was the New York Knicks who eliminated Philly in the first round of the playoffs. While these professional challenges were significant for Embiid, another profound event occurred around the same time he got drafted, deeply affecting him on a personal level. It was an emotional setback at a crucial stage of his professional achievements, which he regrets to this day.

In a recent interaction with David Marchese, the NY Times reporter asked Embiid about his little brother Arthur and how his death in October 2014 at the age of 13 in Cameroon changed Joel’s perspective on life. “It changed a lot. Losing someone that young and someone that’s so close to you, especially because you’re not — I wasn’t around,” Embiid responded to the sudden turnaround in his life after his younger brother passed away in a car accident. As the 7x NBA All-Star proceeded with his grief regarding his unavailability to his family at the moment, he further stated, “I hadn’t gone back to Cameroon since I got to the States, so I hadn’t really seen him in a long time.”

Joel Embiid moved to the States in June 2014 after being selected by the Sixers in the draft class. With heightened professional commitments and the urge to move ahead in life, Embiid could not relieve his mom during those mourning moments, but it did change his priorities towards his life. “Family is very important. It made me not want to have three kids. It made me want to have four,” Embiid stated about his new approach toward family after out of his mother’s three kids only two remain.

Joel Embiid named his son in tribute to his younger brother!

The depth of Joel Embiid’s grief and his bond with his younger brother can be seen in the name of his son, Arthur Elijah, who carries the same name as his late 13-year-old sibling. Embiid and his wife, Anne de Paula, welcomed Arthur in September 2020, and as per People, it was clear that his son’s name matching his late brother was not a coincidence. Moreover, the way Embiid praises his child in press conferences, it seems like he is expressing what he could have said to his brother.

This sentiment was evident in Embiid’s 2023 press conference where he said, “Honestly, he’s the main reason why I’m really here. Becoming a father changed my whole life and I just wanted to show him a good example, and I’m glad he is here with us. My fiancée is a big part of it, too.” It is worth noting that Embiid’s younger brother did not live long enough to pursue his elder brother’s legacy.

However, it’s not the same for Joel Embiid’s child, as his wife told ESPN in 2021, “He just has this personality where he wants to motivate you. His friends, his family, and now with Arthur.” More or less, Joel Embiid is doing everything he can to provide and motivate his son for what he could not do with his brother despite all the struggles he faced in the early stages of life. All in all, he is doing all that a father should do, and that’s also in the best way.