Why Are the Sixers Hiding Joel Embiid’s Injury Status?

After an investigation resulted in a $100,000 fine, Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse is still bypassing questions about the oft-injured star who has yet to play this season.

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has yet to play this season and there is no timetable for his debut. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Nick Nurse, Philadelphia 76ers coach, stepped onto a dais Wednesday to resume his side gig as human pinata. Philadelphia’s season is a week old and the franchise’s superstar, Joel Embiid, has yet to touch the floor. No preseason games. No regular-season games. Nothing. And for whatever reason, the Sixers, beyond classifying it as “left knee injury management,” refuse to explain why. Asked again for some clarity on Embiid’s status before Philly’s loss to the Detroit Pistons, Nurse didn’t even try. 

“I’m going to have to punt that one,” he said.

Swell. Here’s the reality: Embiid is injured. At least that’s what the NBA concluded when it completed its investigation of L’Affaire Embiid this week. The league “confirmed that Embiid has been unable to play in the 76ers’ regular-season games this season due to a left knee condition,” the league said in a statement. For downplaying it—and some would argue outright lying about it—the NBA slapped the Sixers with a $100,000 fine. 

So why not address it? This is the mystery. The secrecy surrounding Embiid is positively Kawhi Leonard-esque. It’s not like an Embiid injury would be a major shock. He tore the meniscus in his left knee last season. He has broken orbital bones, dislocated his finger and missed two full seasons with foot problems. Since being drafted, Embiid has missed 46% of the Sixers’ regular-season games. 

Embiid being injured isn’t news. 

Frankly, it’s news when he’s not. 

“Our guys are working out,” Nurse said. “They are making progress.”

Got it. 

This was always going to be a different season for Embiid. After years of watching the 7-foot star limp through early playoff exits, priorities changed, for Embiid and the Sixers. Embiid had already won an MVP, collected a handful of All-NBA nods, made more All-Star teams than anyone cares about. There was no reason to prioritize regular-season honors. Now it’s about the playoffs.

No back-to-backs? Fine. Skipping the occasional short road trip? Whatever. Giving him time off in January and February? Makes sense. Sitting out the first four games of the season doesn’t … unless Embiid is really hurt.

But when? And how? The Athletic reported Embiid’s knee was too “unstable” to play, which is certainly open to interpretation. As recently as August, Embiid was playing competitively. He played a significant role in USA Basketball’s gold medal-winning run through the Olympics. He started five games. He averaged 17 minutes. At Sixers media day, Embiid claimed to have lost between 25 to 30 pounds. 

A month later … nothing. Embiid’s absence has been compounded by that of Paul George, whose well-articulated injury—a bone bruise in his left knee caused by a collision during a preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks—has kept him out of the lineup. With their two stars in street clothes, the Sixers have opened the season 1–4, the latest an embarrassing double-digit defeat to the winless Pistons on Wednesday. 

“Gotta keep fighting, keep finding ways for guys to get going, guys to get good shots,” Tyrese Maxey said. “We gotta be better on the defensive end. We gotta be better at all aspects. Without them, it’s not much margin for error.”

Is this a big deal? Not really. It’s weird, yes, but if Embiid returns this weekend—the Sixers don’t play again until Saturday, against the Memphis Grizzlies—this will be quickly forgotten. But he needs to play. Maybe not 60 to 65 games. But he at least has to be in the 50s. You need talent to win in the NBA. But you also need chemistry, the kind that can only be developed by Embiid, George, Maxey and Philadelphia’s overhauled bench playing together. 

Nurse (surprise) wouldn’t commit to any timeline Wednesday. “I’m anticipating to get a much clearer idea on Friday,” Nurse said. He claimed he didn’t know the team had been fined and suggested reporters ask team president Daryl Morey or general manager Elton Brand for more details. He took a few more whacks from an understandably irritable Philadelphia press corps before retreating into the locker room.

“I got a game, and several games to coach, and lots of things going on,” Nurse said.

Indeed. And all anyone wants to know is when Embiid will be a part of them.