Sixers rule out center Joel Embiid for the remainder of the preseason
The seven-time All-Star is continuing his slow ramp-up to the season. A knee injury down the stretch ruined his 2023-24 campaign.
Fans looking to see how Joel Embiid meshes with Paul George and Tyrese Maxey this preseason are out of luck.
The 76ers announced Sunday that the 2023 MVP will miss the team’s remaining preseason games as he continues his cautious ramp-up to the season.
The Sixers (1-2) have only three games remaining this preseason. They face the Atlanta Hawks on Monday at State Farm Arena. Then the Sixers will host the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday at the Wells Fargo Center and will conclude the exhibition slate on Friday against the Orlando Magic at the Kia Center.
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Embiid missed the Sixers’ first three preseason games and is not on their three-game road trip, which began with games in Des Moines, Iowa, and Boston before the team traveled to Georgia on Sunday.
Asked Thursday if Embiid would join the team, coach Nick Nurse said the All-Star center was undergoing a scheduled assessment of his left knee. Nurse added that the Sixers were “waiting for what’s next” in regards to his availability following the assessment.
The team said Sunday that Embiid is progressing well and will continue to take part in individual treatment plans designed to best support his health for the regular season. This news comes after Embiid disclosed during the team’s training camp in the Bahamas that he was not scrimmaging with the team.
The 7-foot-2 center played in just 39 games last season largely because of a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee.
He returned after surgery with seven games left in the regular season. But he was still limited by the injury then and during the team’s first-round playoff series loss to the New York Knicks. Embiid also continued to wear a knee brace while helping Team USA win a gold medal at this summer’s Paris Olympics.
“I think I’m slowly building back up,” Embiid said of his knee on Oct. 3. “I think that’s the main thing, slowing building back up and go from here.”
The Sixers opened the exhibition season with a 139-84 victory over the New Zealand Breakers last Monday at the Wells Fargo Center. They suffered a 121-111 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. On Saturday, the Boston Celtics prevailed, 139-89, at TD Garden on a night when the Sixers rested their starters.
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Philly opens the regular season at home against the Milwaukee Bucks on Oct. 23.
The seven-time All-Star’s presence alone gives the Sixers their best opportunity to contend for a championship. That’s why the often-injured player is determined not to rush back, especially after last season.
Embiid injured his knee in a road loss against the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 25. That led him to miss road losses to the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers on Jan. 27 and 29.
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He returned Jan. 30 in a road loss to the Golden State Warriors and suffered the cartilage tear after playing without mobility, having little lift, and being a liability at times. That raised questions about whether the tear was the result of returning too soon.
The same concern was raised after Embiid returned from the first injury late in the season.
That’s why the 30-year-old said at training camp that he intends to take it easy until he’s ready to play.
“Even going back to when we signed the last extension, they made sure to let me know that they have my back and they understand and they know me,” said Embiid, who signed a three-year, $192.9 million contract extension on Sept. 20. “I’ve already accomplished a lot. A lot of things, everything. Then there’s one thing missing [an NBA title], and they just know that that’s all I care about.”