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Joel Embiid reportedly started the process of becoming a naturalized citizen for France a few months ago. According to recent reports, Embiid has been granted citizenship by the French government. The latest rumors suggest that the Philadelphia 76ers superstar could start his international career as soon as possible.
The official website of the Olympics confirmed the news. The Official Gazette of the French Republic validated his citizenship on July 5. This means that the five-time All-Star could play for France in the 2023 FIBA World Championship and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
FIBA allows one naturalized player on every national team's roster. Embiid has not played for Cameroon and opened up about the possibility of becoming a French citizen in 2018.
The 28-year-old was born in the French-speaking Cameroonian capital Yaoundé. Embiid is fluent in French, while also having some family members living in France.
Former NBA player and French international Boris Diaw commented on Embiid's application back in May. He confirmed to L'Équipe that the Sixers superstar has started the process.
"I know he has personally started the naturalisation process and that he would like to play for France," Diaw said. "That being said, we are not putting the cart before the horse and we are waiting for these procedures to be completed."
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Joel Embiid could help France win internationally
France will be participating in the 2022 EuroBasket from Sept. 1-18. It remains undecided whether Joel Embiid will be called up for the tournament.
France are in Group B with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania and Slovenia. They were shockingly eliminated by Germany in the Round of 16 in 2017.
If Embiid is not ready for the EuroBasket, he will certainly be available for the 2023 FIBA World Cup. France have not qualified for the tournament, but are currently in the second round of qualification. Les Bleus finished third in the 2014 and 2019 FIBA World Cup.
France has been quite successful in international competitions for the past several years. They are coming off their first silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
They were narrowly defeated by the United States in the gold medal game, 87-82. The team is led by several NBA stars including Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Theo Maledon.
The addition of Embiid to the French squad will make them an even better team. Gobert and Embiid may work together since the latter can shoot from beyond the arc. It's also worth noting that the Sixers superstar is arguably one of the best players in the world today.
Embiid is coming off his second consecutive MVP runner-up campaign. He averaged 30.6 points, 11.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.5 blocks last season. He led the Sixers to the Eastern Conference semifinals wherein they were eliminated by the Miami Heat in six games.
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