Philadelphia 76ers Hopeful for Joel Embiid's Return vs Knicks
*UPDATE: Joel Embiid is ruled OUT vs New York Knicks on Wednesday.
Firing up the week with a back-to-back set, the Philadelphia 76ers hope to get a handful of reinforcements. One name to keep an eye on is the veteran center, Joel Embiid.
Lately, Embiid has been battling one of his few setbacks this season. Currently, Embiid is dealing with a foot sprain, according to the NBA’s official injury report. The seven-time All-Star suffered the setback ahead of the December 25 matchup against the Boston Celtics.
Heading into Tuesday’s outing against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the 76ers ruled out Embiid as soon as they revealed the injury report. It was a disappointing result, considering Embiid had a chance to play over the weekend after he was upgraded to questionable.
However, there could be a hint of optimism since the OKC matchup was the first night of the back-to-back. All season long, Embiid has missed at least one of those games, if healthy.
Embiid’s status couldn’t be confirmed as early as Tuesday night, but Sixers head coach Nick Nurse remained hopeful.
“Hopefully, tomorrow is a good day, and he’s ready to go,” Nurse told reporters.
The Sixers came up way short against the Thunder on Tuesday night. With a 118-102 loss, the Sixers dropped to 15-23 on the year.
Embiid wasn’t the only player to miss the action on Tuesday. Beyond Jared McCain and KJ Martin, who are out for extended periods, the Sixers rolled without Andre Drummond, Paul George, Kyle Lowry, Caleb Martin, and Tyrese Maxey.
After Tuesday’s loss, Nick Nurse didn’t have an immediate answer on the status of any of those guys. The same can be said for the seven-time All-Star center.
At this point, Embiid has missed five games in a row. The Sixers have just one win to show for during that period. The last time Embiid took the court was on January 4, when he clocked in for 28 minutes against the Brooklyn Nets.
In 13 games this season, Embiid averaged 24 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. He made his season debut against the Knicks on November 12. At the time, Embiid accounted for 13 points, three rebounds, and five assists in the 12-point loss.
The Sixers and the Knicks will tip-off at 7 PM ET.
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