Joel Embiid is set to undergo another knee surgery. Nick Nurse and Doc Rivers expressed concern for the Sixers star.

Unfortunately for Joel Embiid, the 76ers center knows a thing or two about left knee surgeries.

Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers even revealed on Thursday that Embiid informed him during their teams’ Feb. 9 game that he would probably have to undergo another one.

At the time, Rivers, the former Sixers coach, didn’t believe him. But as we learned Wednesday, the 2023 MVP was telling the truth.

And Rivers feels bad for the seven-time All-Star, who is scheduled to undergo arthroscopic surgery next week on the left knee. It will mark Embiid’s second surgery on the knee in 14 months and third in nine seasons.

“I mean, it’s tough,” Rivers said. “The guy is as talented as anyone I ever coached. And it’s just too bad for him.”

» READ MORE: Joel Embiid will undergo arthroscopic surgery next week to address his left knee injury

Sixers coach Nick Nurse acknowledged there are concerns about how Embiid will respond after undergoing surgery. But he said the concern has nothing to do with being fearful that a 31-year-old will need to have another procedure on the knee.

“Anybody on our team that is getting a procedure, I think we’re concerned of how they’re going to respond,” Nurse said. “You can throw Jared [McCain, who is sidelined following left knee meniscus surgery]. I know you said about six things in there that really don’t apply to him. But we are still going to have concerns about how it’s going to respond, how does it go and what level of strength, what levels of wear and tear and all the things that go into coming back.

“We are all hoping and Joel, first and foremost, is hoping he can get back to himself. And that’s what we are shooting for.”

Embiid played in just 19 games this season. His averages of 23.8 points and 8.2 rebounds were the fourth- and second-lowest, respectively, in his nine NBA seasons. He also shot career lows from the field (44.4%) and on three-pointers (29.9%).

And in his last appearance on Feb. 22, Embiid was benched in the fourth quarter against the Brooklyn Nets.

Embiid, who’s been dealing with knee problems all season, had a tough time moving against the Nets, especially on the defensive end. Brooklyn’s post players scored on him at will as a result.

He also struggled to make shots, scoring 14 points on 4-for-13 shooting.

After further evaluation, the Sixers determined on Feb. 28 that Embiid was medically unable to play and would remain sidelined to focus on treatment and rehabilitation. At that time, the team said it was working with the medical experts to determine the exact treatment plan.

But arthroscopic surgery is normally less invasive and requires a shorter recovery time. Why did the Sixers opt to go that route instead of another procedure that might require a longer recovery time?

“I don’t really have a whole lot of sense of that,” Nurse said. “Again, I think that … what can I say for what I know? I mean, I’m not super deep into this. But I do know, again, there were a lot of doctors and a lot of different opinions.

“And I think that this is part of it, and the rehabbing and strengthening of it and the care that goes along with it, I still think is part of the plan, the procedure and then getting him back to 100% … And he should be able to get to work, rehabbing it much sooner off of this than maybe some of the other stuff. But I’m not even sure how long some of the other stuff would have kept him out to be honest with you.”

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Embiid has an extensive injury history that includes plenty of left knee problems.

During the 2016-17 season, Embiid missed 18 games with a bone bruise of his left knee. He later missed the last 23 games of the season due to a meniscus tear of the same knee, which required surgery on March 24, 2017.

Then, after dealing with knee soreness at different stages of the 2018-19 season, Embiid missed eight games from late February to early March of 2019. He followed that up by missing another 10 games with a bone bruise to his left knee in March 2021.

And he missed 29 games last season after surgery for a lateral meniscus injury in his left knee. He had missed five other games earlier in the season for left knee soreness.

He’s also had problems with his right knee.

Embiid missed Game 5 of the 2020 first-round playoff series against the Washington Wizards with a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee. And he missed Game 4 of the 2023 first-round series against the Nets with a sprained right knee.

But Embiid’s left knee has presented the majority of the problems for the seven-time All-Star. And they continue to do so.