Is Sixers' Center Joel Embiid Turning Heel in Philly?

PHILADELPHIA, PA -- For the last few years, you couldn't say anything negative about Joel Embiid to a Sixers fan without feeling the wrath of Philly coming your way. Despite having his visible flaws as a player and struggles with durability, Embiid was an untouchable figure in Philly sports and shockingly almost above all criticism.

Nowadays, though, things are changing. In his fourth playing season, Embiid has been criticized more than ever not by only by the national media -- but by his own fans as well. In Philadelphia, players live under a microscope. One simple mistake can cause an entire arena of over 20,000 in attendance to boo.

While they always revert to cheering when things go well, players don't always embrace the support and send the love back. Not right away, at least. As of late, Embiid's effort has been questioned by many. As his conditioning is still suspect in the eyes of the spectators, many believe the big man has been unmotivated.

Lousy body language at times, coupled in with uncommon struggles, has created a fan base that's ready to give the center a piece of their mind, even though he's an All-Star for the third consecutive season. Standings are all that matters to the fans, and the Sixers are currently standing in fifth place, which is undoubtedly below expectations.

In-house, the Sixers know this. But the fans seem to want to project their dissatisfaction with individual players on the team, and booing is the way they choose to do so. This past Friday night during player introductions, not every member of the home team received cheers. Sixers' head coach Brett Brown drew the loudest boos, but the two big guys, Al Horford and Joel Embiid heard some here and there as well.

During the matchup against Memphis, Horford felt the need to display a shushing motion with the finger to his mouth after draining a three. Clearly, his gesture was aimed towards the fans that wouldn't stop booing him every time he touched the ball. It seemed as if his harmless actions were a one-time thing, but instead, he started a small trend.

The next game, Embiid, made it known he was well-aware of the adverse reaction from some who attended Friday's game as he liked a tweet regarding the situation. When he came out during his pregame introductions against Chicago, the boos were still a thing.

Using the negativity as motivation, Embiid ended up notching a double-double by scoring 28 points, grabbing 12 rebounds, and even blocking four shots on the defensive side of the ball. His 30 minutes' worth of contributions helped the Sixers pick up their 33rd win of the year, advancing to 24-2 at home.

However, his solid outing on the court wasn't what anybody wanted to talk about on Sunday night. Instead, Embiid had to explain his version of the shushing motion where he not only does the simple gesture -- but where he also adds in a "shut the [expletive] up," to go along with it.

At first, Embiid painted it a personal battle as opposed to calling out the doubters. "I was just talking to myself," he claimed. "I have not been playing up to my standards. Even tonight, I didn't shoot the ball well and didn't play well, so I'm just mad at myself."

But he couldn't dodge the truth for long. Everybody knew what Embiid was going for when he uttered his choice of words, and the All-Star center wasn't going to hold back any longer. "I don't care how it looks," he said. "I'm just here to play basketball. I'm getting back to myself, being a good a**hole and trying to dominate," he ranted before quickly jumping up and walking away from the press conference.

How will that go over with the fans? Soon we'll find out. On social media, I'd say it has probably been a 50/50 reaction. Some love the energy, while others believe Embiid's recent actions have been unacceptable in the eyes of the fans who supported him for all of these years.

With another home game coming up on Tuesday, Embiid will get another chance to run out of the tunnel onto the court at the Wells Fargo Center in front of Sixers fans. That moment should reveal whether he's back in the good graces of his recent critics, or if Embiid's heel turn is truly becoming real in Philadelphia.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_