NBA Rumors: 11 Frighteningly bad early-season narratives fans should be worried about

The Philadelphia 76ers mishandled the Joel Embiid situation

One thing that still boggles my mind with this whole Joel Embiid situation is the fact that he was "allowed" or decided to play in the Olympics during the summer but wasn't ready for the regular season. That's either bad management or bad decision-making from Embiid. Either way, there's some mishandling of this situation taking place. Embiid still hasn't made his regular-season debut and the outlook for the new-look Philadelphia 76ers is getting worse and worse with every passing day.

In retrospect, Embiid probably shouldn't have played in the Olympics if this is what was waiting for him at the start of the regular season. One side dropped the ball and I'm not sure which one deserves more blame for the situation that the Sixers find themselves in at the moment.

At some point, the Sixers have to protect their $200 million player from himself. There's a chance the Sixers may have spoiled this season for themselves before it even began.