Joel Embiid and Paul George will miss their fifth straight game with left knee injuries when the Philadelphia 76ers host Memphis on Saturday night.
The oft-injured Embiid has yet to play in a game this season, although he participated fully in Friday’s practice, including a 5-on-5 scrimmage against the team. George, who has yet to play this season with a bruised left kneecap, also participated in a full practice and scrimmaged against the Sixers.
Embiid skipped the entire preseason and hasn’t played a significant basketball game since helping Team USA win gold at the Paris Olympics.
Embiid has officially begun what the 76ers are calling left knee management. He missed 39 games last season because he underwent knee surgery after tearing the meniscus in his left knee in a game against Golden State on January 30.
“Everyone was on the same page,” Embiid said at the 76ers’ New Jersey complex. “If your body doesn’t respond well and your body tells you one thing (sit down). I did it. I told you, I broke my face twice, and I came back early. I risked losing my vision. I still came back. People “For him to say he doesn’t want to play, I’ve done too much for this city and I’m at risk of people saying that.”
Embiid’s absence from the season opener raised suspicions in the NBA, and on Tuesday the league fined the team $100,000 for public statements, including President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey and coach Nick Nurse. NBA rules, including the league’s player participation policy. It was confirmed that the participation policy was not violated.
Embiid was the third pick in the 2014 draft but missed both of his first two seasons due to injury. Since his first full season in 2016, Embiid has played in 433 of 805 regular season games and just 59 of 67 playoff games.
Embiid sprained his right knee in the 2023 playoffs, which forced him to sit out games against Brooklyn and Boston. He missed two games in the second round in 2022 and two games in the first round in 2021 due to various injuries, as well as two games in which he missed the start of the 2018 playoffs due to an orbital fracture and two games in 2019 due to a knee issue.
“I hope I’m as lucky as everyone else,” Embiid said. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t try and do whatever it takes to get out there. I’ll be here soon enough.”
Embiid added that he has no regrets about competing in the Olympics. He could return for the Sixers’ three-game West Coast swing, which begins Monday against Phoenix.
“I feel really comfortable and trusting,” Embiid said. “I want to do my best. I don’t want to be in a situation where I feel scared (and hurt again) if I do something. As I’ve said since my last surgery, I think it was the most difficult mentally. In the past, regaining that trust was just easy. .”
The Associated Press reported.
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Joel Embiid
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