Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid ‘is medically unable to play and will miss the remainder of he season to focus on treatment and rehabilitation,” the team said in a statement Friday.
“We are working with medical experts to determine the exact treatment plan and will update media when we have more information,” the Sixers said. “The team and specialists will continue working with Joel to ensure the best path forward for his long-term health and performance.”
Embiid’s ailing left knee has bothered him all season, and the 2022-23 NBA MVP has played in just 19 games. He hasn’t been his All-Star self, averaging just 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 0.9 blocks and shooting just 44.4% from the field. Those stats are significantly lower than his five All-NBA seasons.
Earlier this week, coach Nick Nurse said the Sixers weren’t ready to sideline Embiid for the rest of the season. However, Embiid hasn’t played since Feb. 22 and in his two final games this season, he played just 15 minutes and 14 minutes, respectively.
The knee injury has altered the season Philadelphia expected to have. Instead of competing with Boston and Cleveland for supremacy in the Eastern Conference, the Sixers are 20-38 and in 12th place in the East – 2½ games behind Chicago for the final play-in spot.
The Sixers have lost nine consecutive games.
What’s next for Joel Embiid?
The Sixers, Embiid and Embiid’s inner circle will search for a remedy for his left knee. He is just 30 years old, and if he can return to health, he has good years left. But getting him back to All-NBA level has been a difficult task. He has tried several measures, including a platelet-rich plasma therapy and surgical procedures.
Embiid played in just 39 games last season and has played in 80% of his team’s games in just two of his nine seasons due to several knee, foot, and facial injuries – and that doesn’t include missing 2014-15 and 2015-16 after he was drafted with the No. 3 pick by the 76ers in the 2014 draft.
Embiid is as dominant a big man as the league has seen since Shaquille O’Neal, and Embiid has the ability to make 3-pointers. For his career, he has averaged 27.7 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.6 blocks and shot 50.1% from the field.
Embiid and the Sixers will spend considerable time seeking an answer, and both sides are intent on finding a path that re-establishes Embiid as the team’s most productive player.
What’s next for the 76ers?
When Philadelphia signed Paul George to a four-year, $211.5 million contract in July during free agency and retained Tyrese Maxey on a five-year, $203.8 million contract, the Sixers thought they were putting together a team that could compete for a championship.
But Embiid’s knee, along with other injuries, including a season-ending injury to rookie Jared McCain in December, derailed those plans.
The remainder of the season will have an impact on the Sixers in the 2025 draft. As part of a 2020 trade with Oklahoma City, the Sixers sent the Thunder a 2025 first-round pick. However, that pick is protected for picks 1-6 in 2025, so if the Sixers end up in the top six, they keep the pick. Right now, they have the sixth-worst record in the league. The draft lottery is May 12.
In a deep 2025 draft class, especially in the lottery, that pick takes on greater importance for the Sixers’ future.
(This story was updated with additional information.)
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