Joel Embiid is out indefinitely, as the 76ers’ injury woes continue
It’s been one month since Joel Embiid last took the court for the Philadelphia 76ers. From the sound of things, it might be a while before we see him do it again.
Three days after announcing that they’d shut down 2016 No. 1 pick Ben Simmons for the remainder of what would have been his rookie season due to continued complications in his ongoing recovery from surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his right foot, the Sixers announced Monday that Embiid, too, had hit a snag in his attempted return from injury, and will remain on the shelf for the foreseeable future:
Medical update (1/2):
•Embiid did not take part in shootaround after swelling in left knee. MRI today. Listed out indefinitely.
The 76ers selected Embiid with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft, but missed the first two seasons of his professional career with foot injuries before finally getting healthy enough to play this season. Even operating under a minutes restriction intended to preserve his body, Embiid was a revelation in the first half of the season, a one-man wrecking crew who almost single-handedly elevated the long-moribund Sixers from the ranks of the NBA’s worst teams to something approaching respectability on the court.
Through 31 games, Embiid has averaged 20.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 2.1 assists in just 25.4 minutes per game. Extrapolate those numbers over 36 minutes of floor time, and you’re talking about a level of per-minute production only matched in years past by guys like Kareem, Shaq, Ewing, the Admiral and Anthony Davis. Focus on just the scoring and rebounding in players’ rookie seasons, and the…