Philadelphia 76ers: Joel Embiid likes his food like he likes his defenders

Joel Embiid is the man.

He’s a five-time All-Star, a three-time All-NBA performer, a three-time All-Defensive player, and the reigning NBA scoring champion, in addition to being arguably the most popular player in the Philadelphia 76ers, maybe even in the entire City of Brotherly Love regardless of sport.

Fans love to love him, non-fans love to hate him, and brands love to put him in their advertisements, as he’s lent his likeness to everything from Under Armour to Mountain Dew and even Hulu.

But if there’s one thing about Joel Embiid that is contentious even among his Philadelphia 76ers loyal fanbase, it’s his food cooking preferences, as the 7-foot-tall Cameroonian wonder has a well-done preference that extends from steaks to chicken wings.

The Philadelphia 76ers’ chef takes a little longer on Joel Embiid’s dishes.

Alright, allow me to set the scene: The NBA’s seventh-leading postseason scorer – seriously, look it up here – Tyrese Maxey is readying himself for his first postseason trip north of the border, and he wants to take a snack along for good measure. Even on a one-way trip from Philadelphia to Toronto, which takes roughly 1:43 according to Fightsfrom.com, having a healthy-yet-filling snack can help to make that time fly by and keep a pro athlete better prepared for their forthcoming playoff game than the Chickie’s & Pete’s crab fries and La Colombe Black and Tans available to us normal folks at PHI.

Maxey’s snack of choice? Wings prepared by his personal chef.

Now for a professional athlete, especially one about to get paid like Maxey will when his rookie-scale contract comes to a close, having a personal chef-prepared meal for the road is probably no big deal. Athletes have very specific dietary needs, and having them fulfilled by a professional is much smarter than trips to Mcdonald’s for breakfast before a game at the Linc – no offense to DeVonta Smith.

What is unusual, however, is Joel Embiid’s request to not only share some of Maxey’s wings but to have them cooked in a very specific way moving forward.

Friends, I give you a Tweet from The Athletics’ Rich Hofmann that needs to be read in full to be believed.

Burnt; you know, I don’t usually see that option on the Buffalo Wild Wings menu, but hey, maybe it’s above my price point.

Now, if you’ve been keeping up with the, shall we say, less consequential but no less interesting aspects of the Sixers’ season, this isn’t the first time Embiid’s preference for well-done food has come up so far this season. According to Tobias Harris, Embiid and company once went to a steakhouse that is “well-known” and the Sixers’ franchise player asked his server to have his steak cooked well-done, or, as Philly’s second-highest-paid player put it, “he asks for the steak to be burnt, burnt.” Much to his shock, the chef came out and refused to honor his request, suggesting that it is against the chef’s code to overcook a good piece of meat. This left Embiid downtrodden, to the point where he told Harris, “I don’t want to eat here anymore.”

Friends, Embiid is a fan of overcooked food; accept it.

Okay, is this news news? No, some actual news is that James Harden leads the Philadelphia 76ers in points responsible for at 48 per game and that Danny Green has recaptured his former glory in the starting lineup, which you can read about here and here. What it is, however, is a fun tidbit that brings a little levity to a time of the season when things can get way too serious. If this story can bring that to you, then it, like Embiid’s wings/steak/chicken/probably sushi, is well-done.