Did Joel Embiid learn shooting from Adam Sandler? Debunking the rumors around 6x All-Star's shooting skills
As Joel Embiid continues to make his case for NBA MVP, the Philadelphia 76ers superstar found himself the subject of a post on Twitter that quickly went viral. Notorious fake-news outlet Buttcrack Sports shared photos of Embiid and Adam Sandler, claiming that Embiid learned to shoot by analyzing the actor.
But given the source, it's safe to say that isn't the case. Buttcrack Sports was founded in December of 2020, following in the footsteps of Ballsack Sports. The two outlets have continued to create fake news and fake quotes that have duped the likes of ESPN in the past.
As the fake outlet's bio claims, they are the 'Least Trustable Sports News'. Earlier this season, the 'outlet' took credit for tricking Trae Young with a fake quote. At the time, they claimed Draymond Green was talking trash about Trae Young, fooling the young Atlanta Hawks guard into thinking they were credible quotes.
This baiting was on full display this week when the 'outlet' claimed Joel Embiid learned how to shoot from analyzing Adam Sandler, which you can see below.
Joel Embiid says he learned how to shoot by analyzing Adam Sandler's jumpshot https://t.co/qmWsoYYrS0
Joel Embiid's MVP case
Joel Embiid furthered his case for the MVP award this week with a dominant performance against the Boston Celtics on Tuesday. The 76ers won the closely-contested showdown 103-101 with Embiid putting up a whopping 52 points.
At the same time, he also led the game in rebounds with 13, while shooting 20-25 from the floor. Following the win, which saw him score more than half of his team's points, The Process earned high praise from the hoops community.
After the game, 76ers head coach Doc Rivers was helping Embiid's case, speaking at the post-game press conference with media members where he stated:
"We did so many things wrong, but what we did right was Joel Embiid.
"The MVP race is over."
Former MVP James Harden also chimed in, defending Embiid as the rightful MVP of the league amid his dominant season.
"Joel should win it. He's been in contention for it the last few years. He led the league in scoring last year. It looks like he's going to lead the league in scoring this year. We're the third seed in the East. He's been consistent all year."
After the performance, Embiid's odds of winning the MVP vote skyrocketed on sportsbooks. The race for the award had been a closely contested one between him and Nikola Jokic, with Giannis Antetokounmpo trailing in third and now Embiid is the favorite.
According to FanDuel sportsbook, Embiid is a -1000 favorite to win the award, while Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo both sit at +1200. With Embiid and the 76ers on a quest to win the Eastern Conference Finals and punch their ticket to the championships, his play is much needed.
As Doc Rivers referenced in his post-game press conference, the team struggled against Boston. Thanks to Joel Embiid's dominance, however, the team has built quite a bit of momentum for themselves.
Do you think they can go all the way?
You can see Doc Rivers' comments in the video below beginning around the 45-second mark.