Joel Embiid to use part of new max contract to aid Cameroon

Joel Embiid is back from injury and already tearing it up on the basketball court after his first two preseason games since being sidelined in February with a slight torn meniscus.

Embiid has also been the recipient of a brand spanking new five-year $148 million deal to stay with the Sixers. A max contract that star players work towards during their careers.

Lucky for Embiid, the Sixers decided that this week was the best time to put together a contract right before the October 16 extension deadline.

But what is he going to do with all the money? Buy a brand new lamborghini? Get a new crib in Philadelphia? Maybe he will spend some of the cash on those things, but the big thing that Embiid plans to use his money on is to help people in his native country of Cameroon.

“Over there, there’s a lot of poverty,” Embiid said Tuesday. “A lot of people don’t have a lot of stuff.”

“I feel like I need to do a lot of stuff over there.”

Embiid has a charity that his parents are running in Cameroon, and according to the Inquirer's Keith Pompey, the 23-year-old is "elated that he’ll have money to go toward his foundation that helps people in need."

A max contract to a player who has only seen 31 games of action in three seasons may have raised a few eyebrows around the league, but Embiid's intentions for some of his salary says a lot about him as an individual.

Embiid and the rest of his Sixers teammates will gear up for battle with the Washington Wizards this Wednesday in DC for Opening Night of the regular season.

Josh Liddick is Sixers editor for SportsTalkPhilly.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshLiddickTalk.