The Philadelphia 76ers will have to get through much of the second half of the season without the reigning NBA MVP, as Joel Embiid will be sidelined for an extended period as he will have surgery on his meniscus injury suffered last week in a collision with Jonathan Kuminga.
BREAKING: 76ers star Joel Embiid — the reigning MVP — will undergo a procedure this week to repair a left meniscus injury, a team official tells ESPN. A recovery timeline is expected after procedure, but expectation is that he will miss an extended period of time. pic.twitter.com/9c3ZqM7iT2
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 5, 2024
76ers’ Joel Embiid will have a corrective procedure this week to address an injury to the lateral meniscus in his left knee, team says. Sources say Embiid’s surgery will address a displaced flap of the meniscus and he will be sidelined for extended period of time.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 5, 2024
There is no timetable for his return, as that will be dependent on how surgery goes and exactly what doctors have to do to repair his meniscus, but it’s fair to assume that an “extended period” will likely be the majority of the rest of the regular season. The hope for Philadelphia will be that Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, and company can keep them in the top-6 of the East for a guaranteed playoff spot, with their star center returning for the playoffs. Whether Embiid will be able to be back on the court and ramped up to full strength is a considerable question, but that has to be the optimistic view in Philly at the moment.
With the trade deadline arriving on Thursday, we’ll see if the Sixers look to bring in someone to fill the sizable void left by Embiid in the frontcourt, as their options at center currently are Paul Reed and Mo Bamba. In the meantime, they’ll lean heavily on Maxey for offensive creation (he delivered with a 51-point outing last week) and a larger role for Harris as they look to stay in the East’s playoff picture.