Once again, Joel Embiid was out for the 76ers’s last game on Monday night, as his injured left knee seems to be a recurrent issue for the former league MVP. Apparently, the big man underwent testing last night, with more scheduled for today, and was ruled out of his squad’s 142-110 loss to the Bulls.
Not only did he miss Philadelphia‘s defeat against Chicago, but his last match with his team he had to be taken out during the entire fourth quarter to manage his injury. This means that Joel has missed out on his 38th game of the campaign, in which the player has struggled to find his pace.
Many wonder if Embiid has played his last game of the current season, but his coach disagrees. “Not at that point, at all,” Nick Nurse said Monday, after the Sixers have tried resting him or watching him play through pain. “We are playing and testing and trying to figure it out and go from there.”
“Lose. Sit Joel Embiid for the rest of the season. … Sit Paul George while you’re at it. And just be done with it and prepare for the next three years ‘cause this season is a joke.” @stephenasmith shared his thoughts on the 76ers’ season. pic.twitter.com/7PJjMnJYXU
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 24, 2025
The All-Star center has competed in just 19 of his squad’s 57 games so far, and had no choice but to witness the 76ers trail by as many as 50 points last night against the Bulls. In those contests, he’s averaged 23.8 points, but scored only 29 points combined in his last two matches.
“I don’t think anybody envisioned it going like this,” Nurse admitted. “It’s disappointing on a lot of levels. He wants to play. We want him to play. Our best version is of with him playing. It hasn’t worked out like that. Yet.”
His teammate Paul George, who has also missed out on injury, offered Joel some advice. “Drugs help me,” he shared this weekend. “That’s kind of what gets me over the hump. I get it, especially how big he is, the size he is, and how he plays. I know it takes a toll on him.”
Nurse revealed that dealing with Embiid this season has been a handful. “It’s all been challenging,” he said. “The sheer number of guys that have been out and in and out and not playing, then him playing at less than his best, all those things have been a challenge. Just try and figure it out night by night and take it as it comes.”
