The Philadelphia 76ers will face the Minnesota Timberwolves in a Friday preseason matchup in Des Moines, Iowa. Star wing Paul George will notably make his Sixers debut in this game. However, his fellow star, Joel Embiid, will miss both the game and the trip.
After the Sixers’ practice Thursday morning at Grand View University, where Nick Nurse first became a head coach at the young age of 23, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer spoke with Philadelphia’s coach, who is entering his second year with the team.
When asked if Joel Embiid would make for any portion of the team’s preseason road trip, Nurse responded:
“He’s not here. He’s at a scheduled assessment of his knee that was always on the schedule, and we’re still waiting for what’s next.”
Philadelphia will face the Celtics in Boston on Saturday and the Hawks in Atlanta on Monday after their game against Minnesota. To not have Joel Embiid available for what would, at the very least, be 66% of the team’s preseason is certainly not an idea, but it’s a bit early to panic as well.
While Nurse didn’t exactly convince anyone that Embiid would make an appearance on the trip, he did not rule it out either. There remains a chance that Embiid could play in one or both of the team’s East Coast preseason matchups. There’s also the possibility that he will rejoin the team in Philadelphia on Wednesday, Oct. 16, to face the Brooklyn Nets, and that two games will be sufficient preparation for the season.
This assessment was planned according to Nurse, which makes sense considering both Embiid’s midseason injury last year and his appearance in the 2024 Olympic Games with Team USA. It’s understandable that the team would want to get an idea of how his knee is responding to training camp and a return to practice, and it is certainly more difficult to do so on the road than at home.
However, if this is more than what Nurse is letting on, there are some concerns. Not just of the idea of Embiid’s injured knee, not even the missed extra chances to build chemistry between Embiid and his many new teammates, but also the fact that despite claims against an 82-game NBA season, all 82 games do matter. Embiid surely will not have perfect attendance this season for many reasons, mainly precautionary, but with so many new faces, being down a former MVP is not ideal.
As this story develops, Philly Sports Network will provide updates accordingly.
