NBA Twitter collectively freaked out on Monday night when Joel Embiid posted on social media a photo of himself shushing the crowd in Philadelphia and quoting The Dark Knight Rises: “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”
That would be worrisome already for Philadelphia 76ers fans, but then Jimmy Butler jumped in on Instagram and commented, “I know a place where villains are welcome.”
Embiid responded, “Damn right my brother.”
WELP.
Now, that said, Embiid tagged his location as “All love,” and on Twitter, where he posted another message (“Made for this… If I can take it then you can too.”) it was #AllLove.
Not to ratchet up the drama further, but: that quote just happens to be one that Butler has frequently used over the years.
Here’s a post from October of 2018, nearly a month before Butler was traded to the Sixers and while the forward was in the middle of pushing for the Timberwolves to deal him.
And he stuck the quote on the insoles of his shoes last year:
Despite all of that, here’s a reason why I don’t think this whole thing is as big of a deal as we’re all making it out to be. Embiid thrives on being the king of the trolls. When some athletes might be distracted by talking trash on social media, this is Embiid’s thing that feeds him. This might be a way of trying to get back his mojo in the middle of a rough season for him and the franchise.
All love … right?
