Sixers fans are angry. They want more transparency about Joel Embiid ... and everything else.

Amid the controversy last week surrounding Joel Embiid’s health and his absence from the 76ers’ lineup, I threw out an offer to the team’s season-ticket holders on Friday: If any of them agreed with or weren’t bothered by the Sixers’ murky answers to obvious questions, they should email me. I’d publish their opinions and insights in a follow-up column.

Well, as Nicolas Cage said in The Rock … gosh, kind of a lot’s happened since then.

Embiid spoke on Friday, in animated fashion, about his status and career. The Sixers lost at home Saturday to the Memphis Grizzlies. Minutes after the game, Embiid shoved my colleague Marcus Hayes in the locker room. With Paul George making his debut for them, the Sixers then lost Monday in Phoenix to the Suns. They’re now 1-5. The vibes have not been masterful.

Those circumstances probably contributed to the result of the quasi-poll I ran. Had I received a single positive email or social-media message from someone who had spent money to watch a recent Sixers game in person, I would have included it below. I did not receive one. Instead, the feedback was laced with anger and frustration, and the Sixers’ on-court performance had little, if anything, to do with why these fans feel the way they do.

A sampling:

Steve, from Center City, has had season tickets for more than 20 years:

“In all those years, I’ve always felt positively about the team’s and players’ performances and effort, even when I couldn’t give away tickets to games because the team was so bad. Until now, that is.

“I understand that there is a paramount focus on winning a championship, and I would certainly love to see one. However, first and foremost the NBA is entertainment. Very few people can afford to attend playoff games (if the Sixers ever make it to the championship series). However, there are a large number of fans who can manage to afford to bring their kids to one or two games a year. At home, the expectation is that they will get to watch the superstars on their team as well as those on the visiting team. As a season-ticket holder, my expectation is that, unless injured or there’s a life situation that needs to be attended to, professional athletes will do their jobs. When superstars take games off to safeguard their future health (hardly a guarantee), the fans paying the steep ticket prices to pay their exorbitant salaries are being cheated.”

» READ MORE: Nick Nurse, Sixers trying to get Joel Embiid’s mind back on basketball after locker room altercation

Ed, from Sewell, had been a season-ticket holder for seven years:

“My big gripe now is, how is it Nick Nurse’s job to go out and try to explain to the press what is going on? Where are Daryl Morey, Elton Brand, or Josh Harris? The franchise has been a complete mess since Harris bought it (not that it was great before then). I’d like to see a boycott of the season-ticket holders and force him to sell it.”

Gary, from Bala Cynwyd, isn’t a season-ticket holder. Over the last quarter century, though, he had gone to eight to 10 games each season with his children, sitting in what he called “the cheap seats.” He wrote:

“This is the first time in more than 25 years I haven’t bought any tickets. The way things ended last year, coupled with the team’s complete lack of transparency regarding player status, has left me feeling very, very disrespected. It is one thing to do your best and come up short. It’s another to keep fans in the dark. I take it as a sign of disrespect that we still have no idea of exactly what is wrong with Joel and what the plan is for getting him back on the court. What’s left is the players (and coaches) being forced to take the heat, which just isn’t right.”

David, from Gloucester County, was a season-ticket holder, one among a group of friends. He gave up his seats two years ago:

“I just told my friends, ‘Never mind, I’m not paying $600 to show up and watch the bench play like crap.’ This team is a complete clown show. They are more interested in being developers downtown, where nobody wants them to be, rather than just try to win games and make their paying customers happy. I’ll probably never go to a game again if they move downtown, as there’s no easy way to drive and park down there and no trains from Glouco to Philly.”

Scott, also from South Jersey, is in his fourth season — and what he said will be his last — as a season-ticket holder:

“It is painfully obvious the Sixers knew this for a very long time and announced Embiid would not be playing the day before the season started long after season ticket deposits and contracts were signed. I have contacted my ticket rep twice with no response and sent an email to the Sixers — no response. The franchise is dysfunctional, duplicitous, and frankly very arrogant. Instead of putting up a new arena, they need to build a hospital.”

» READ MORE: Sixers season ticket-holders are angry

The lesson here, for the Sixers or any other major organization inside or outside of sports, seems pretty simple: Be as proactive, as direct, and as honest in your interactions with the public as possible.

It’s difficult, sure. The athletes and, to a lesser degree, the coaches make millions upon millions of dollars. They have tons of power. They want to control their narratives. They want to call the shots. But that more challenging course of action is the better one. The alternative is to take the easy way out, to presume that you’ve already captured your customers and can afford to string them along. All that does is foster distrust and resentment. Don’t believe me? Take a look around this week. We’ve seen where that approach leads.