Joel Embiid showed up and showed out against the NBA's finest Sunday night. Embiid had 19 points—third on his team behind Toronto's DeMar DeRozan and Portland's Damian Lillard—in addition to snagging eight rebounds and swatting two shots (including one emphatic block of new rival Russell Westbrook at the rim).
At this point, he's no longer a project. Embiid is a full-blown star. That doesn't mean, however, that he has forgotten that patience is a virtue. There are perhaps two things Embiid loves as much as basketball:
1. The Process
2. Rihanna
The music star once told a young Embiid to "come back when you're an All-Star." So, technically, now's his time to make a move, right?
Not so fast, my friend. During an All-Star Weekend press conference, Embiid said he's taking his time. The Rihanna discussion starts around the 30-second mark of the below video.
A reporter said he would play Embiid one-on-one for Rihanna's heart, and Embiid, without hesitation, said he'd accept the challenge.
"For her? I'm ready anytime. We follow each other on Twitter, though, so I just gotta slide in her DM," Embiid said, before invoking his favorite slogan. "I'm taking my time...it's a process."
It appears JoJo has had a change of heart since he famously said in January that he has "to pass and move onto the next one" because "she denied me back then."
Insert the goat emoji here. May Joel Embiid's smitten pursuit of Rihanna live forever.
