Gross: Marcus Hayes rips Joel Embiid for not playing; brings up his son and deceased brother in latest column

Nobody in Philadelphia respects Marcus Hayes. I don’t even want to give him attention, but his most recent column for the Philadelphia Inquirer is so egregious I really have no choice but to talk about it.

The Philadelphia 76ers played their first regular season game on Wednesday night and as we all know, Joel Embiid sat out. He’s been dealing with knee issues throughout training camp and the team is opting to load manage his minutes right out of the gate. I have no issue with this — I want Embiid at 100% for the postseason. Sadly, most of the national and local media doesn’t see it the same way.

Shaq and Charles Barkley both bashed Embiid for not suiting up to start the season, the NBA Deep State is opening an investigation into the organization because of it — it’s just plain ridiculous.

Marcus Hayes saw how the national media was reacting to Embiid’s injury and decided to join in to scavenge some clicks.

His most recent column titled, “Joel Embiid disrespects the Sixers, the game, its greats, and himself. Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley are right to rip him,” is so out of line you actually have to read it to believe it.

There’s a lot of bullshit scattered throughout the article, but there’s one snippet in particular that has everyone up in arms — and rightfully so.

Marcus Hayes on Joel Embiid sitting out to start the season

“Joel Embiid consistently points to the birth of his son, Arthur, as the major inflection point in his basketball career. He often says that he wants to be great to leave a legacy for the boy named after his little brother, who tragically dies in an automobile accident when Embiid was in his first year as a 76er.

Well, in order to be great at your job, you first have to show up for work. Embiid has been great at just the opposite. Now in his 11th season, he consistently has been in poor condition. This poor conditioning apparently seems to have delayed his debut this season. Embiid won’t play in Wednesday’s opener or the next two games.”

Look, if you want to bash Embiid for not being ready to start the season, fine. I don’t really care what anyone outside of the organization thinks or says about that. Bashing Embiid and pointing to his son and dead brother as some sort of validation for your critique is gross. It’s pathetic on so many levels and Marcus Hayes shouldn’t be allowed to write another Sixers column because of it.

You want to talk about being good at your job and leaving a legacy — what has Marcus Hayes ever written that’s ‘great?’ His legacy in Philadelphia is a shitty one. One I don’t think anyone would be particularly proud of.

Have you ever heard anyone say, “Man, that Marcus Hayes article was great!” No, you haven’t. Because there’s never been a great one. Time and time again, his columns take aim at the players representing our great city. For what? Clicks? Attention? Your insecurities? All the above?

After hearing all the backlash, Hayes edited out this snippet from his column. He even said he’s sorry.

So, I rewrote the lede to my column and replaced the picture. I can see why so many people were upset about it. Sorry about that.

Thanks for all of the constructive criticism. https://t.co/GE8xIHc22z

— Marcus Hayes (@inkstainedretch) October 23, 2024

“Sorry about that.”

“I just bashed you and brought up your dead brother who tragically died in a car accident. Sorry about that.”

“I wrote about how your letting your son down by not playing in a regular season game. Sorry about that.”

“I’m glad Shaq and Barkley are giving you shit on national television. Sorry about that.”

What a loser.

Never write about the 76ers again.