The Big Lead

Joel Embiid’s old Indiana diss goes viral as Pacers make NBA Finals

Joel Embiid had trolled Tyrese Haliburton about the possibility of him joining Indiana in the past, and the clip is going viral after the Pacers made the NBA Finals.

By Divij Kulkarni

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid looks on after the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at Wells Fargo Center.
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid looks on after the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at Wells Fargo Center. / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
facebooktwitter

Joel Embiid had another season to forget in 2024-25 as he missed most of it through injury. The former MVP was able to play just 19 games, and fans have been left wondering if he'll ever get back to full health during his NBA career.

One of the knocks against Embiid has often been his lack of postseason success. Joel Embiid has never made it to the Eastern Conference Finals, a fact that his haters love to point out. And in the aftermath of the Indiana Pacers making it to the NBA Finals, they have received more ammunition.

RELATED: Pascal Siakam beat teammate Tyrese Haliburton by one vote for Eastern Conference MVP

Haliburton jokingly attempted to recruit Embiid to the Pacers during their time with Team USA.

“You gonna come to Indy? Come on!” Haliburton said. “I might wanna come to Indy… Sike! Never in my life. I’d rather retire,” Embiid responded.

“Yo, that’s not fair, bruh. Next time ya’ll come to Indy, come on, let’s go to dinner or something, come to my crib,” Haliburton said. “Nah, I’m good,” Embiid fired back.

RELATED: LeBron James breaks down the real issue with modern youth sports

This interaction was brought up on Reddit, with fans taking the opportunity to troll Embiid.

"And now he is retired and Indiana is in the finals. Ironic," wrote on fan. "What a disaster that Sixers project turned out to be. Yikes," said another.

"Indianapolis is actually a lovely city. Midwest stays underrated," a third fan commented. "Well, this absolutely aged like milk, huh," wrote another.

"That's good because nobody wants that injury prone bum with his ridiculous contract lol," a fifth fan said. "Well, Pacers don't want you either Joel, they'd rather be in the Finals," a sixth fan wrote.

While this going viral is less than ideal, Embiid has bigger things to worry about at the moment. The Sixers' future and his own is shrouded in uncertainty, but hopefully he will be back on the court next season.

GET MORE TOP STORIES from The Big Lead by subscribing to TBL YouTube channel

NBA: Fans can’t believe it as Thunder-Pacers Finals matchup is confirmed

NFL: Bills star Josh Allen, Hailee Steinfeld married in California ceremony

SPORTS MEDIA: Knicks, Yankees give New York sports fans a day to forget

VIRAL: Epic timelapse video shows Indiana Fever-Pacers court transformation for NBA Playoffs

WNBA: Dallas star DiJonai Carrington rips ref for calling security after Wings-Sky game

Home/NBA