What Joel Embiid and The Weeknd Have In Common
Stay with me on this one.
If Bravo and ESPN had a baby, it would be Impersonal Foul. Consider becoming a paying subscriber for just $6/month.
I’m back!
Things have been quite busy over here and I haven’t dedicated the time to bring you the sports gossip *you* deserve. I’m sorry!
I’ve been working on
with , which has been so fun. If you haven’t listened or rated the show, you can do that here. If you’re a brand and want to partner with us (I see who subscribes…), you can shoot us an email here. If you want to send us an anonymous sports gossip tip, you can DM us on Instagram.
On a non-sports gossip note, did you know I consult for brands? I’m taking on new clients/projects! If you’re interested in working together, let’s chat.
Remember: The best way to support Impersonal Foul is by becoming a paying subscriber for just $6/month.
Now, back to the regularly scheduled programming, where I’m talking about how Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has more than one thing in common with The Weeknd.
Let’s discuss.
What’s Going On In Philadelphia???
There are many clunky analogies I will try and fail to make. On-set drama is a lot like on-court drama. Behind-the-scenes is a lot like behind the…lockers???
A sports team is like a show or movie production. A lot of very well paid famous people are contractually forced to be in a high stakes and very public work environment for months on end—often while away from their families and friends for long periods of time.
Naturally, weird nonsense happens. There’s! So! Much! Drama!
Especially when said employees are expected to have a productive working relationship with other talented, rich, and famous people with big egos.
It’s like an 8 pm half-hour workplace comedy on metaphorical and literal steroids.
While HBO’s failed series, The Idol, isn’t one of those 8 pm half-hour workplace comedies…It’s not NOT one of those and how information about that show rolled out in the world is feeling very similar to the 2024 Philadelphia 76ers and how their season is going.
Stay with me.
In the summer, the Sixers made a big and buzzy signing of full-time podcaster and part-time basketball player Paul George to have him join forces with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
Coming into the season, the Sixers were considered a title contender. As of this writing this, they are 2-12 (Not! Good!) and it is a dumpster fire I cannot take my eyes off of.
Wait—what does this have to do with The Idol, you ask???
Well, the Sixers spent a lot of money on Embiid and gave him maybe a bit too much freedom. Much like HBO did to The Weeknd and Sam Levinson…
And yet, I am glued to the television, watching these train wrecks unfold. I! Can’t! Look! Away!
Sometimes, the mysterious and delicate chemistry of how so many talented people with so much money can produce something so unfathomably…bad…is more fascinating than making something great.
Before the release of The Idol, the leaks and rumblings about what a mess it was started to come out.
The story changes! A director exiting the project! A toxic working environment! The more news about that show, the more it made me want to watch the mess unfold on-screen.
Lily-Rose Depp was like Tyrese Maxey. She was giving it her all while the ship was sinking around her.
This week, news broke of a team meeting (the two most ominous words in sports) among the Sixers players.
According to reports, Maxey called out Embiid for being late “for everything.” Ooop! Our costars aren’t getting along.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Impersonal Foul to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.