Joel Embiid's Journey to Full Recovery Could Take 'A While'

Joel Embiid discusses how he's feeling after battling the flu.

Joel Embiid’s uphill battle to get into optimal shape continues to be a process this season. 

Before catching the flu and missing the last three games, Embiid admitted that getting into shape has been challenging since plantar fasciitis affected his conditioning in the offseason.

Before the Sixers star was even close to feeling one hundred percent, he started dealing with the non-CVOID illness that took him off the court all of last week.

On Sunday, Embiid returned to practice. After the session, the big man was seen getting up and down the floor in a post-practice session as he prepared to play in Monday’s game.

“He looked good,” said Sixers head coach Doc Rivers after practice. “He looked good. He had the flu, and it’s hard. Your lungs are burning, but he looked pretty good.”

Despite being questionable ahead of Monday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns, Embiid was issued clearance to play. The big man checked into the game for 36 minutes in his return.

“I thought he looked good,” said Rivers after the game. “We literally told him, ‘When you’re tired, signal, come out. When you’re fresh, get up and come in.’ The only time I put him in was that last stretch because they were going to make a run, and we needed him on the floor. I thought he was great. I thought he got better as the game went on, but down the stretch, he was gassed.”

Embiid turned in a 36-minute shift on Monday night. During that time, he scored a game-high of 33 minutes while securing the double-double with ten rebounds. In the eyes of the big man, he had a so-so matchup, as his shooting was below 50 percent from the field.

But it wasn’t just his shooting Embiid was critical of, it was also his conditioning, which continues to be a battle and one that he anticipates that will take some time to overcome.

“[I need to] keep pushing myself,” said Embiid. “Just try to get myself out of this sickness and hope for the best, but it’s probably gonna take a while because it really hit me. I’m excited for the challenge. We’re gonna need every single minute to be able to hold down the fort without James.”

Embiid’s first set of action since recovering from the flu was promising, but it’s clear he has ways to go before he’s back to the best version of himself. As long as he avoids any setbacks, the big man will only get better with time moving forward. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.