Joel Embiid no longer needs to put it any more work, work, work, work, work, work.
The 76ers big man was named a starter for the 2018 All-Star Game, grabbing the final Eastern Conference frontcourt sport over Kristaps Porzingis.
Being named an All-Star starter is a big deal for Embiid, not just for his basketball career, but for his love life as well.
Prior to developing into one of the most dominating young big men in the league, Embiid was primarily known for his social media prowess. In addition to trolling fans and reminding everyone to “trust the process,” Embiid frequently professed his love for pop star Rihanna.
Despite Embiid’s numerous attempts on various social media channels to woo the award-winning singer, his advances were to no avail. Shortly after his Rihanna love tweets ended, Embiid said “a famous” girl he asked out rejected him and told Embiid to “come back when you’re a All Star.”
While Embiid never mentioned Rihanna by name, fans flooded the pop star’s Instagram shortly after Embiid was named an All-Star starter Thursday.
Embiid previously asked Kelly Rowland, a close friend of Rihanna’s, to put in a good word for him when the two met at an ESPN event. The Sixers star gave a pretty convincing pitch for Rowland to pass along.
“I mean, look at myself. I’m 7-2, I’m good looking. Women usually love my accent because I’m from Cameroon in Africa. And I’m pretty intelligent, too. And I’m funny. I love pretty women. I feel good about myself,” Embiid said while Rowland laughed the entire time.
While Rihanna has yet to publicly respond to any of the fans flooding her social media pages hoping for an Embiid-Rihanna power couple, Embiid surprisingly told TNT he may decide to move on if she comes calling now.
“She denied me back then, so why go with her again? I might have to pass that and move on to the next one. … Trust the Process,” Embiid said.
