The angry French expose Embiid: He wrote to Macron, asked for a passport and promised to play for France

The Americans have published the final list of basketball players who will represent their country at the Olympic Games in Paris. It also includes Joel Embiid, the MVP of the NBA last season, who would have been a strong candidate for that award this year as well if he hadn't missed a good part of the competitive year due to injury.

With that, the USA won the battle for the towering Cameroonian, but today, a venomous 'answer' came from France. The famous portal Radio Monte Carlo (RMC) exclusively published a facsimile of the letter (you can view it here) that Embiid sent to the country's president, Emmanuel Macron, in October 2021.

In that letter, the Cameroonian requested to receive a passport of the Republic of France and pledged to play for that national team. Embiid received his passport in July 2022, but then turned his back on France and chose America.

The RMC portal published the entire content of the letter, which states:

"Mr. President,

I know about your sincere interest in basketball and its development, in general for the whole sport that brings the glory of France. Certainly, I am not writing to you to discuss the NBA season that is about to start and from which I have high expectations with my club Philadelphia. Now I play a leading role and make the club a serious contender for the title.

I am writing to tell you about France. Although I spent much of my youth in the US, as well as in France, I am Cameroonian. I was born in 1994 in Yaounde. Therefore, Cameroon will forever remain an important part of my identity. But the second part is French. Part of my family is from France, and in addition to speaking the same language, I often stay in France. Whenever I have the chance, I visit my aunts Suzanne and Lucie, who live in Courtry and Courcouronnes, and my cousin Pierre, who lives in Evry. I have fond memories of summer vacations spent in France, like the summer of 2009 when I spent the whole of July in the capital. In addition, I regularly come to Paris, where I want to have a permanent second home.

Also, after talking with the Basketball Federation of France, I made a decision. I would like to take steps to obtain French citizenship, so that I can then play for les Bleus. I don't want to play for any other national team. I also wrote to the Ministry of Foreign and Internal Affairs.

I have never played for any national team. It would be a huge honor for me to join the French national team at the next major competition, most notably the 2024 Olympics.

I take into account the seriousness of my request, what it represents, what it means, but also in certain aspects its duration and complexity in relation to the usual criteria for granting citizenship. That is why I am asking for your support in these initiatives, without which they would not be successful.

I am, of course, available to you and your associates to support this common ambition that we share with the French national team and its leaders.

Thank you for the attention you have given to my request and I ask you to believe, Mr. President, in the expressions of my deepest respect.

Joel Embiid".

There is no doubt that the Cameroonian in the USA jersey will get a 'warm' welcome in Paris...