Sixers Reveal Plans for Keeping 7-Time All-Star Healthy

How will the Philadelphia 76ers keep Joel Embiid healthy for the playoffs? Daryl Morey revealed the team's plans.

Dec 15, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers resident of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey speaks with the media before a game against the Detroit Pistons at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Every year the Philadelphia 76ers share a similar message when heading into the new season: they have to keep the All-Star center Joel Embiid healthy.

Since entering the NBA, Embiid has struggled with staying on the floor, especially when it comes to the playoffs. Last year was no different for the big man.

While Embiid recovered from a knee injury in time to compete against the New York Knicks in round one, it was apparent his knee was setting him back at times. On top of that, the center was going through a battle with Bell’s Palsy.

The Sixers dropped out in round one against the New York Knicks after losing 4-2. Embiid avoided any offseason procedures and even managed to compete with Team USA at the Paris Olympics back in July.

Going into the 2024-2025 NBA season, the star center has been deemed healthy, but the team is making it clear that they’ll have to implement a plan to keep him healthy for later in the season.

“We’re gonna be really smart about this,” said 76ers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey. “We’re focused on April, May, June.”

Since 2017-2018, Embiid managed to play in over 50 games for Philadelphia. Over the two seasons prior to last year, Embiid played in over 65 games—the most of his career in a single season.

Last year, a knee injury derailed his progress and prevented him from playing in fewer than 40 matchups for the first time since his debut season in 2016.

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The Sixers know they can’t simply sleepwalk through the regular season and wake up when the playoffs roll around, but they might be more hesitant to allow Embiid to compete if he’s not near one hundred percent.

“It doesn’t mean that the time right now isn’t important as well, but we’re gonna be very smart about how we manage him through the season,” Morey added. “There’s gonna be a lot of information as we learn about how everything’s working with the entire roster but with Joel specifically.”

The Sixers will have to keep an eye on quite a few veterans this year. The management process has already started as a few players, including Joel Embiid, were healthy scratches in Philly’s day-one scrimmage at training camp in The Bahamas.

“We actually have quite a few guys who we think we need to be smart about how we manage them through the season while still maintaining a high level of play and keep an eye on the prize as we do that,” Morey finished.

The Sixers will continue their training on Wednesday and keep the ball rolling until they make it to Monday when they host their first preseason game of the season.

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