Washington (AFP) – Philadelphia’s star center Joel Embiid will miss the rest of the NBA regular season as he and the team continue to seek a solution for the left knee trouble that has hindered him this season, the 76ers said on Friday.
The Cameroon-born big man, who was the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2023, has missed numerous games this season because of pain and swelling in the knee, and told reporters last week that the injury didn’t allow him to play to his highest standard.
Related news
“The Philadelphia 76ers and Joel Embiid have been consulting with top specialists regarding ongoing issues with his left knee,” the team said in a statement on Friday. “After further evaluation, it has been determined that he is medically unable to play and will miss the remainder of the season to focus on treatment and rehabilitation.”
Embiid has played just 19 games this season. He was limited to 39 games last season after tearing the meniscus in his knee. He had surgery in February 2024 and returned in April for the 76ers’ playoff run. He went on to win an Olympic gold medal with the United States in Paris, and this month acknowledged that he didn’t have adequate time after his surgery to recover.
“The way I was playing a year ago is not the way I’m playing right now,” Embiid said this month. “It sucks. I probably need to fix the problem, and then I’ll be back at that level. But it’s hard to have trust when you’re not yourself,” added Embiid, who averaged 23.8 points and 8.2 rebounds this season.
Embiid, who missed the first nine games of the season between knee problems and a suspension, then ran into injury trouble with knee pain and a sprained foot. He also suffered a sinus fracture. After Embiid sat out all of the fourth quarter of the Sixers’ loss to the Brooklyn Nets on February 22, ESPN reported that he and the team had decided to consult doctors to explore “alternative options” after treatments including injections used this season were ineffective.
“He’s giving us what he can,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said last week. “He’s not certainly the guy we’re used to seeing play at a super-high level. I commend him for giving us what he can.”
© 2024 AFP
