Joel Embiid's season is over, the Sixers said on Friday afternoon. A plan of action to treat his left knee is not yet finalized, but the team determined he was medically unable to play. The team's full statement:
"The Philadelphia 76ers and Joel Embiid have been consulting with top specialists regarding ongoing issues with his left knee. After further evaluation, it has been determined that he is medically unable to play and will miss the remainder of the season to focus on treatment and rehabilitation.
We are working with medical experts to determine the exact treatment plan and will update media when we have more information. The team and specialists will continue working with Joel to ensure the best path forward for his long-term health and performance."
This season began with Embiid inking a three-year contract extension worth a projected $193 million — tying him to the Sixers for five years when adding the two remaining seasons on his current deal — and declaring that his intention was to remain with the franchise for his entire career. And it has all gone downhill since, culminating in recent reports that Embiid and the team were searching for "alternative" methods to treat his left knee, with many expecting him to not return to action this year after only appearing in 19 contests.
How did we get to this point? First, Embiid was not scrimmaging on the first day of training camp as the team elected to be proactive in managing the knee, which was repaired with meniscus surgery last February. Then, he was not scrimmaging during any of the five days of training camp. Embiid was later ruled out to participate in preseason action, as the Sixers continued to assure folks that the long-term stability of Embiid's knee was being kept in mind.
When Embiid was ruled out for the first three games of the regular season before it even began, alarm bells began going off despite the Sixers' repeated insistence that nothing was wrong. Embiid ended up missing the first six games of the season with an injury designation which has become far too familiar by now — "left knee injury management" — and missed the next three games due to a suspension handed down after Embiid had an altercation with a reporter.
Embiid played in three of the next four games, and looked like a complete shell of himself, averaging 14.7 points and making only 32.4 percent of his shot attempts. In the next contest he finally broke out, scoring 35 points in as many minutes. Just when things seemed to appear to be improving, Embiid had a setback, missing the next six games due to increased swelling in his knee.
Once Embiid made his next return, he had a bit smoother of a time. Embiid did not quite reach his MVP-caliber levels, but was beginning to dominate opposing teams with some sort of regularity. Between Dec. 8 and Jan. 4, Embiid played in nine of the team's 12 games (one of his absences was due to a sinus fracture which caused him to wear a mask for multiple weeks). During those nine games, Embiid scored 26.4 points per game on strong efficiency while only averaging 28.6 minutes. But in the midst of that stretch came a left foot sprain Embiid suffered on Dec. 25.
The play in which Joel Embiid seemed to suffer his left foot sprain on Dec. 25: pic.twitter.com/pL7PBQdVPQ
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) January 16, 2025
A bizarre timeline of events surrounding that foot sprain ended up causing Embiid to miss six consecutive games with that sprain, despite playing in a handful of games immediately after suffering the injury. The Sixers went on to announce that Embiid's foot sprain had healed, but swelling in his left knee had popped up again. Nine more absences followed as the team floundered.
Embiid made another return on Feb. 4, and looked stellar. He posted a 29-point triple-double and scored the go-ahead basket in the final seconds of a win over the Dallas Mavericks. It was a stunning performance given his previous struggles in return games. Embiid was all smiles after that game, joking that his improved aggression was due to a fear he could be traded in the aftermath of the Mavericks trading Luka Dončić.
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While Embiid averaged 25.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists over the team's next three games, his diminished mobility was extremely concerning as the Sixers were blown out twice before Embiid was at the center of a late-game collapse. After the All-Star break, Embiid scored 15 points on 3-for-9 shooting in a blowout loss to the Boston Celtics, then scored only 14 points on 4-for-13 shooting from the field against the Brooklyn Nets, putting the Sixers in a major hole as he looked completely incapable of moving at the level required of him to compete at the NBA. They made a late-game run with him on the bench, a jarring sight in itself.
Embiid reportedly experienced more swelling in the aftermath of that Brooklyn game, and the reports began circulating about the team potentially shifting to a more aggressive treatment plan that could rule him out for the final several weeks of the season. Embiid will earn about $250 million in the four seasons following this one, so his long-term viability for the team is still of the utmost importance.
Just 14 months ago, Embiid was averaging 36.0 points, 11.4 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.1 steals per game on marvelous efficiency. He was as dominant of a two-way force as anyone could find in basketball, the favorite to win his second straight MVP trophy. A whole lot has changed since then.
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