76ers vs. Lakers: Is Joel Embiid on Philly’s Injury Report?

Lately, Joel Embiid's been a regular on the Sixers' injury report.
76ers vs. Lakers: Is Joel Embiid on Philly’s Injury Report?
76ers vs. Lakers: Is Joel Embiid on Philly’s Injury Report? /

The playing status of Joel Embiid has come into question more often than not lately. As the Philadelphia 76ers center has been dealing with hip soreness over the last couple of weeks, he was questionable for a handful of games.

Last week, Embiid finally missed a matchup for the first time this season. As the Sixers paid a visit to the Minnesota Timberwolves on the second night of a back-to-back set, Embiid assumed he might get the night off following a 41-minute shift against the Cleveland Cavaliers, which marked a season-high.

Sure enough, the big man was ruled out. The Sixers replaced Embiid with Marcus Morris in the starting lineup. The head coach, Nick Nurse, continued to utilize Paul Reed as the backup center. In Embiid’s absence, the Sixers came up short, collecting their second-straight loss.

A few nights later, the Sixers were back on the court, visiting the Oklahoma City Thunder. Embiid was upgraded to probable for the game, and he was cleared for action. Facing the star rookie Chet Holmgren, Embiid teased a triple-double. Going 8-18 from the field and 19-21 from the charity stripe, Embiid produced 35 points. He also collected 11 rebounds and dished out nine assists in the Sixers’ 127-123 victory over OKC.

On Monday night, the Sixers will battle it out with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although they have a couple of players present on the injury report ahead of the matchup, the Sixers left Embiid off of it this time around.

Barring any unexpected changes, Embiid should be good to make his 16th appearance of the year on Monday night against the Lakers. In two appearances against the Lakers last season, Embiid collected over 30 points in each outing. During the early December matchup, he posted 38 points, five assists, and 12 rebounds in 46 minutes of action. The following month, Embiid produced another 35 points, four assists, and 11 rebounds in 36 minutes.

Monday night marks the 11th time Embiid will face the Lakers in his career. 


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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA