Joel Embiid Sends Cryptic Tweet Following Kevin Durant Trade Request

The Brooklyn Nets’ biggest star, Kevin Durant, requested a trade on Thursday, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Just last season, Durant inked a significant multi-year deal with the Nets, assuming that the big three of James Harden, Kyrie Irving, and himself would stay in Brooklyn long-term.

Midway through the 2021-2022 season, Harden requested a trade. He landed in Philadelphia with the 76ers in exchange for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and draft picks. Months later, Durant, Irving, and the Nets lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Boston Celtics.

After getting swept by the eventual Eastern Conference Champions, the Nets now face a ton of uncertainty in the future. While Irving mentioned he would pick up his player option for next season, the star guard showed signs of wanting to pack up and play for other teams if possible.

Now, Durant wants out as well. Like everybody else paying attention to social media, Sixers center Joel Embiid took to Twitter to send out a cryptic tweet just moments after the news about Durant’s request broke.

Embiid will likely never admit what he was laughing out loud about, but one could only assume it’s related to the turmoil going on in Brooklyn.

After all, the Nets are a direct rival of the Sixers. While it’s no guarantee the Nets will move Durant, it seems very likely to happen. Since Durant will draw tons of interest in the trade market, it could only be a matter of time before Brooklyn and the future Hall of Famer part ways. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.