We now know the specifics of the knee injury of Joel Embiid and how it could affect the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round.
According to Ramona Shelburne, Joel Embiid will not be fully healthy in the Sixers’ upcoming series against the Celtics or the Hawks. While he will play in the series, he will play through a sprained LCL. He may not play Game 1 or Game 2 but he certainly will return at some point in the series.
Shelburne went on to add that the injury recovery time for this injury is one to two weeks. While she said that he could be back, she established that he won’t be healthy in the series. This recent development isn’t anything really new as Doc Rivers has said that he will be at “50 percent” healthy-wise in the best-case scenario in the second round.
Obviously, Philly fans should be rooting for the Hawks to extend their series against the Celtics for as long as they can, allowing Embiid more time to rest. They got a break last night when Trae Young went off but they need another win from the Hawks in Game 6 to extend the series even further.
Can the 76ers survive with an injured Joel Embiid?
So far in the playoffs, there have been a lot of teams underperforming. Pending three straight wins from the Bucks, it really does seem like the East will come down to a potential Celtics and 76ers series in the second round.
Yes, New York or Miami will be tough to beat but with the amount of All-NBA talent that both of these teams have, they should be heavily favored. The Celtics really blew their chance at getting the Sixers on their heels by forcing them to play without at least a fully healthy Embild.
The All-NBA big man won’t be completely healthy for the series, but he does have an extra two days of rest that the Sixers surely value. Looking long-term, Embiid has been injured for at least part of every postseason run they have made while he’s been on the roster.
It is more of an off-season question but one could wonder how this could affect Harden staying in Philly and not going back to Houston in free agency. This injury and the numerous others in the post-season reflect the fact that Embiid should always have a significant co-star with him.
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