Doc Rivers Addresses Embiid's Injury Following Game 4 Loss to Wizards

Sixers head coach Doc Rivers talked about what he knows regarding Joel Embiid's injury following the Game 4 loss to the Wizards.

The Philadelphia 76ers entered Monday night's game with hopes of sweeping the Washington Wizards in the first round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs. With a 3-0 lead, a victory would've sent the Sixers back to Philly with nearly a week off from games as they would've punched their ticket to the second round.

But an unfortunate series of events took place in D.C. on Monday night. 11 minutes into Game 4, Sixers All-Star center Joel Embiid went down with an injury. As the big man attempted a tough layup over Wizards big man Robin Lopez, Embiid went crashing hard to the ground.

At first, it seemed Embiid might've injured his back or his hip based on the first look, but the big man was diagnosed with knee soreness after he came out of the game and went back to the visitor's locker room at the Capital One Arena. 

Embiid wouldn't return to the court on Monday night. To no surprise, his absence was notable. Not only did the Wizards take advantage of Embiid's absence on the defensive end, but Philly's offense stalled at times as well.

While Embiid's setback didn't seem too serious, his head coach Doc Rivers couldn't confirm anything related to Embiid's setback following the Game 4 loss.

“Obviously, it was the middle of the game, so I didn’t check," Rivers said in regards to Embiid's injury. "I just knew that he was out. I wasn’t even sure what it was — I think it was the knee or the back — I’m not even sure. I wish I could tell you guys [more], I really don’t know. I know they’ll probably do imaging tomorrow as precautionary, but I don’t know. We’ll find out tomorrow.” 

A victory on Monday would've been ideal for the Sixers as it could've bought them a few extra days without having to worry about Embiid's playing status. However, a loss in Game 4 sets up a Game 5 matchup between Washington and Philly for Wednesday.

Considering the Sixers don't have any further information regarding Embiid's status aside from him being sore, his status remains up in the air for Wednesday's game.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.