Joel Embiid and Philadelphia 76ers eye alternatives as knee issues continue: Report

Philadelphia – Joel Embiid’s continuing difficulties with his injured left knee have him and the Philadelphia 76ers ready to get further medical opinions about possible options, including surgery, ESPN reported on Feb 23.

Embiid, the 2023 National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player, seven-time All-Star and two-time scoring champion, is to have more tests on his knee and the report, which cites unnamed sources, indicates that specialists will then be consulted.

The 30-year-old has played in just 19 of the Sixers’ 56 games this season, and is averaging 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists. He is shooting 44.4 per cent from the field, well below his career mark of 50.1 per cent.

In the 105-103 loss to the visiting Brooklyn Nets on Feb 22, Embiid was limited to 31 minutes. He fell to the floor after losing the ball late in the third quarter, appeared slow to get back up and was held out of the fourth quarter.

Coach Nick Nurse said after the team’s seventh consecutive defeat that he liked the way his players were going without Embiid, and that he “just wanted to let them roll with it”.

Embiid’s knee was swollen after the game, leaving him questionable for the Feb 24 (Feb 25, Singapore time) clash with the Chicago Bulls at Wells Fargo Centre.

The centre underwent surgery for a meniscus tear in the knee in February 2024 and played in only 39 games last season. Embiid has acknowledged that he might need extended rest for the injury to heal, but he has been trying to stay on the court.

The 76ers sit 12th in the Eastern Conference, 1½ games out of the 10th spot, which represents the last berth in the play-in tournament to try to make the play-offs.

Meanwhile, in on-court action on Feb 24, Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 129-123 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in a testy cross-conference clash.

Ty Jerome scored 26 points off the bench, Evan Mobley added 25 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists and Jarrett Allen scored 13 points with 10 rebounds for Eastern Conference leaders Cleveland.

Their seventh straight win at Rocket Arena improved their league-best record to 47-10.

A scuffle erupted midway through the third quarter, when Mitchell and Desmond Bane tussled while chasing a loose ball and ended up wrestling on the court.

Players from both teams got involved with Mitchell and Bane receiving technical fouls along with Ja Morant and Cleveland’s Tristan Thompson.

Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said he was only sorry that multiple players got involved.

“Stay out of the way and let the two guys tussle, everybody else stay out of it,” he said.

Over at TD Garden, the reigning champions Boston Celtics, fuelled by a near-triple-double from Jayson Tatum, cruised to a 118-105 victory over the New York Knicks.

Tatum scored 25 points with 10 rebounds and nine assists, and the Celtics, who led by as many as 27, thwarted a Knicks comeback bid to post a fifth straight victory.

Karl-Anthony Towns scored 24 points and grabbed 18 rebounds for the Knicks, who trailed 77-50 early in the third quarter but cut the deficit to four points early in the fourth before the Celtics eventually prevailed.

“Second half of the season, we all know it’s time to lock in,” Tatum said. REUTERS, AFP