Shaq Torches Joel Embiid After His Embarrassing Season Debut Against Knicks

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Joel Embiid finally made his season debut for the Philadelphia 76ers in what was the team's 10th game of the year, but instead of playing like a well-rested superstar, he played like a role player still asleep.

Embiid missed the team's first nine games after sitting out the first six due to left knee management, which the league didn't exactly buy given the team was fined $100k, and then missed three more games after being suspended for shoving a columnist after a loss to Memphis earlier in the month.

Instead of taking the floor motivated and angry to prove doubters wrong, Embiid managed to go 2-for-11 from the field, add five assists, and only snag three rebounds in 26 minutes of action in what turned into a 111-99 loss to the New York Knicks in Philadelphia.

Embiid's effort was, let's say, lacking, especially on the defensive end of the floor against the Knicks.

Shaquille O'Neal had already had enough of the Embiid antics and his lack of effort at halftime, he didn't need to see the second half of Tuesday night's contest before going after the big man.

"This was the fear I had for Joel Embiid," Shaq explained during the ‘NBA on TNT’ halftime show. "You announce arrogantly, I’m not playing back-to-backs. I’m not injured but I’m sore. I’ll come back when I want to come back."

"Now, when you say things like that, you’re supposed to come back with extra energy. 0-for-3, I would have been 0-for-15. But you know what y’all would have said. ‘Hey, Shaq’s not playing well, but he’s playing aggressive.’ The plan that they are having — it’s not working. And not only that, I say this respectfully. Joel Embiid will never win a championship until he gets his mind and his attitude right.

Things are already grim for the 76ers as they sit at 2-8 on the year. Now you add what appears to be a completely unmotivated Embiid to the mix in front of a fanbase that already feels ready to jump ship and things may get extremely ugly in the City of Brotherly Love.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.