Joel Embiid was benched for the entire fourth quarter with the game on the line. Can the former MVP get right?

Joel Embiid remained on the 76ers’ bench with Saturday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets on the line because Guerschon Yabusele was a more impactful option.

One has to wonder if this was an embarrassing moment for the 7-foot-2 center who was the NBA’s most dominant player the past two seasons. So it’s not surprising that he and the team are considering alternative options, including another surgery, for his ailing left knee.

Embiid initially told ESPN on Feb. 8 that he might need offseason surgery and an extended rest period to get back to playing at an elite level.

Yet while playing Saturday, he had nothing left in his legs and was easy prey against the tanking Nets.

The 30-year-old, who’s been dealing with the knee all season, had a tough time moving around, especially on the defensive end. That led to the Nets post players scoring on him at will.

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The 2023 MVP and seven-time All-Star also struggled to make shots, scoring 14 points on 4-for-13 shooting.

So, in the fourth quarter, Sixers coach Nick Nurse had a decision to make: Bring the team’s franchise player back into the game or ride Yabusele for the entire quarter. Nurse opted to do the latter in what turned out to be a 105-103 setback at the Wells Fargo Center.

“Well, that group was just playing so well together and had a good feel for the game at that point, and just wanted to let them roll with it,” Nurse said.

Nurse was asked Sunday if he spoke to Embiid about the benching, and if he agreed with it.

“No, I think he saw the way the guys were playing,” he said. “And they were rolling, and they gave themselves a good chance to win.”

The benching came two days after a dejected Embiid said he needs to “fix the problem” in his left knee to return to his All-Star form. Unlike that night, when he scored 15 points on 3-for-9 shooting against the Boston Celtics, he declined Saturday to speak to the media.

Despite having a huge size advantage, Embiid positioned himself in the perimeter in both games.

He attempted six three-pointers on Saturday, missing all of them after going 0-for-2 from deep against the Celtics.

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“You know he’s feeling pretty decent when he’s driving the ball, playing inside a little bit, protecting the rim a little bit,” Nurse said. “And you know he’s not feeling very decent if he’s playing on the perimeter or the opposite of those things.

“He’s giving us what he can. Obviously, he’s not himself. We all know that he’s not certainly the guy we’re used to seeing playing at a super high level. I commend him for giving us what he can.”

But one has to wonder how much longer Embiid will continue to play this season. He was held out of Sunday’s practice and is listed as questionable for Monday’s home game against the Chicago Bulls.

Saturday marked just his 19th game of a disappointing season.

His averages of 23.8 points and 8.2 rebounds are the fourth and second lowest, respectively, in his nine NBA seasons. He’s also shooting career lows from the field (44.4%) and on three-pointers (29.9%). And Embiid has been moving worse in recent games than he had in December and early January.

“I would agree that he’s not moving nearly as well as he was,” Nurse said Sunday. “We were hoping maybe something conditioning, rhythm, that kind of stuff would get that going. But it doesn’t appear that way right now.

“So, again, they’re doing everything they can to see what the status is for tomorrow, and see if it can get a little bit better.”

Paul George, who has dealt with multiple injuries throughout his career, was asked if there’s anything from his experience to pass along to help Embiid.

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“Drugs helped me,” said the Sixers forward, who’s receiving injections to play with various ailments. “That’s what’s kind of getting me over the hump.”

“But I mean, I get it, especially for how big he is, the size he is, and how he plays. I know it takes a toll on him. I think the best thing for it is reps. Once your body is conditioned, you build a callus for, you know, that constant beating and pounding. So that was the best thing for me, just kind of playing through it.”

Sunday’s practice was centered around continuing to get the new players up to speed with a lot of practice reps. Meanwhile, players, who logged heavy minutes Saturday received light practice reps.

Rookie forward Justin Edwards, who missed the past two games with a sprained left ankle, participated in 75% of practice. Nurse said Saturday that he was hopeful that Edwards would play on Monday. However, the former Imhotep Charter standout will remain sidelined for the third consecutive game.

Veteran guards Kyle Lowry (right hip injury management) and Eric Gordon (sprained right wrist) will also remain out.