The 29-year-old was born in Cameroon and holds dual citizenship in France and the United States.

The Philadelphia 76ers star decided to represent America after a meeting with USA Basketball managing director Grant Hill went smoothly.

Embiid is the reigning most valuable player (MVP) in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

It was reported last year that Embiid started the process to represent France and he was also selected for the Cameroon squad in 2017 for that year's AfroBasket.

However, he did not make an appearance for both nations.

France had given him a deadline of October 10 to decide on his future but the 7ft tall player decided to opt against it.

"I’m really proud and excited about this decision.  It was not easy," he announced on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

"I am blessed to call Cameroon, France, and the USA home. 

"After talking to my family, I knew it had to be Team USA. 

"I want to play with my brothers in the league. 

"I want to play for my fans because they’ve been incredible since the day I came here. 

"But most of all, I want to honor (sic) my son who was born in the US. I want my boy to know I played my first Olympics for him."

The decision from Embiid comes as the United States look to seal fifth consecutive Olympic gold in Paris next year.

A group of NBA stars like Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Bam Adebayo, and Devin Booker have expressed an interest in playing at Paris 2024.

The Americans were handed a reality check in the recently concluded World Cup, getting knocked out by eventual champions Germany in the semi-finals.

The also lost to Canada in the bronze medal game, marking the second time the country has failed to medal at the International Basketball Federation event.

The recruiting win for the United States is a blow for Olympic hosts France, who settled for silver in the Tokyo 2020 final.

The US, France, Germany, Serbia, Canada, Australia, Japan and South Sudan have already qualified for Paris 2024.