Current:Home > StocksJoel Embiid injury, suspension update: When is 76ers star's NBA season debut? -VitalWealth Strategies
Joel Embiid injury, suspension update: When is 76ers star's NBA season debut?
View
Date:2025-04-17 01:40:57
Joel Embiid's 2024-25 NBA season is off to a controversial start – and he hasn't even played in a game yet.
Embiid, first due to a nagging injury and then because of a league-issued suspension, missed the Philadelphia 76ers' first nine games and the team has struggled without him. The 76ers, considered one of the preseason favorites in the Eastern Conference after the offseason addition of Paul George, have a 2-7 record heading into Tuesday's nationally televised playoff rematch with the New York Knicks to start off group play in the Emirates NBA Cup.
But the franchise's trajectory could be about to change with Embiid, less than two years removed from being named NBA MVP, on the cusp of a return to the court. Ahead of Embiid's season debut, here's a look at why his injury issues have left some Philadelphia fans and media grumbling and what led to his suspension:
MUST READ:Will the NBA Cup become a treasured tradition? League hopes so, but it’s too soon to tell
Is Joel Embiid playing tonight?
It's trending that way, barring a last-minute setback. For the first time this season, the 76ers did not list Embiid on their injury report going into Tuesday's home game against the New York Knicks for the NBA's in-season tournament. He has also served the entirety of the suspension doled out last week by the NBA.
All things Sixers: Latest Philadelphia 76ers news, schedule, roster, stats, injury updates and more.
Joel Embiid injury update
Embiid is expected to make his season debut with the Knicks on Tuesday night in a game broadcast nationally by TNT (7:30 p.m. ET). He took part in the team's shootaround in the morning. Embiid is coming back from what Sixers officials have deemed left knee management, a designation that drew the ire of some fans due to Embiid's injury history and the fact that he was able to play for the United States at the 2024 Paris Olympics this summer.
Embiid originally injured his knee last January and was diagnosed with a torn lateral meniscus that required surgery. He returned in time for last year's playoffs, but said he was not 100 percent while playing. Embiid said last month he's unlikely to ever play in back-to-back games moving forward as a preventative measure.
Embiid's injury history dates back to his entry into the NBA, when he missed what would have been his first two years in the league recovering from foot injuries after the Sixers chose him with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft. He has averaged more than 26 missed games per season during the eight years since then.
"From what I can tell you, I've broken my face twice; I came back early with the risk of losing my vision," Embiid told reporters last month. "I have broken fingers. I still came back. When I see people say, 'He doesn't want to play,' I've done way too much for this city, putting myself at risk, for people to be saying that."
Why was Joel Embiid suspended?
Embiid's potential return could have perhaps come sooner than Tuesday, but the 7-foot center was suspended for three games by the NBA after getting into an altercation with a local columnist in the 76ers' locker room last week. Embiid took issue with a column written by Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Inquirer that initially referenced Embiid's son and his deceased brother while criticizing Embiid's professionalism and willingness to stay in shape. Hayes later took the passage out of his column.
Nonetheless, after Philadelphia's home loss to the Memphis Grizzlies at Wells Fargo Center on Nov. 2, Embiid reportedly confronted and then shoved Hayes in the 76ers' locker room. The NBA subsequently suspended Embiid for three games without pay, which cost him almost $1.9 million based on the three-year, $193 million max contract extension he signed in September.
Joel Embiid stats
Here's a rundown of Joel Embiid's career stats and accomplishments in the NBA
- 27.9 points per game
- 11.2 rebounds per game
- 3.6 assists per game
- 1.7 blocks per game
- 2022-23 NBA MVP
- 7-time NBA All-Star
- 5-time all-NBA selection (first team in 2023, second team in 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022)
- 2-time NBA scoring champion (2021-22 and 2022-23)
veryGood! (6555)
Related
- 'Squid Game' without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean
- Missing 21-year-old woman possibly with man and his missing 2-year-old daughter
- Prince William’s Special Role at The Duke and Duchess of Westminster's Royal Wedding Revealed
- How Pat Sajak Exited Wheel of Fortune After More Than 40 Years
- John Galliano out at Maison Margiela, capping year of fashion designer musical chairs
- Pre-order the Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge laptop and get a free 50 TV
- Mississippi is the latest state sued by tech group over age verification on websites
- Biden apologizes to Ukrainian President Zelenskyy for holdup on military aid: We're still in
- Where will Elmo go? HBO moves away from 'Sesame Street'
- 1,900 New Jersey ballots whose envelopes were opened early must be counted, judge rules
Ranking
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
- Elizabeth Smart Reveals How She Manages Her Worries About Her Own Kids' Safety
- Lawyer for Jontay Porter says now-banned NBA player was ‘in over his head’ with a gambling addiction
- Woman seriously hurt in apparent shark attack in Hawaii
- San Francisco names street for Associated Press photographer who captured the iconic Iwo Jima photo
- USA's cricket team beats Pakistan in stunning upset at T20 World Cup
- Looking for a local shop on National Donut Day? We mapped Yelp's best shops in each state
- After editor’s departure, Washington Post’s publisher faces questions about phone hacking stories
Recommendation
'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
Watch as fearless bear fights off 2 alligators swimming in Florida river
Yemen's Houthi rebels detain at least 9 U.N. staffers, officials tell AP
Caitlin Clark's next game: How to watch Indiana Fever at Washington Mystics on Friday
A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
Police in Burlington, Vermont apologize to students for mock shooting demonstration
'Perfect Match' is back: Why the all-star cast had hesitations about Harry Jowsey
France's intel agency detains Ukrainian-Russian man suspected of planning violent act after he injured himself in explosion