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TIM BONTEMPS
The Philadelphia 76ers announced that the star center Joel Embiid It is set to undergo arthroscopic surgery next week on its unpleasant left knee.
Embiid will be re -evaluated in six weeks and is expected to recover, the sources were introduced by Espn’s Sharania.
Over the past few weeks 76ers and Embiid have been working on solving knee problems that haunted him for more than a year and caused him to be expelled the season at the end of February. These consultations with doctors and specialists eventually led to the Embiide decision to undergo surgery, and the hope is that it can return to the level played in previous periods.
“The way I played a year ago is not the way I play,” Embiid said after a loss of 124-104 in Boston in February, shortly before he was closed for the season. “It’s angry. … I probably have to solve the problem and then come back at this level. But it’s hard to have confidence when you’re not yourself.”
Embiid ended with an average of 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 assistance in only 19 games this season for Philadelphia, while never in any time shows the type of form it had in the previous two seasons when he In 2023 he won the NBA Award most valuable and was at a pace to become a second player – along with Wilt chamberlain -Wister for more points than minutes played in the 2023-24 season before Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga In January 2024 he accidentally fell on his foot in a game in San Francisco.
In February 2024 he had a progress on his knee and returned in April before the playoffs, where he average 33 points, 10.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists in what became a loss of six games for New York Knicks In the first round Play -Off last spring.
Embiid then continued to play with the US team at the Paris Olympics, although most of the years he fought outside the relevant role in the return of the fourth quarter of the US team against Serbia in the semifinal game of the tournament.
But after he and the team entered the season with the Ambitions Ambitions and the plan to drive Embiid in a regular season by playing it in a back-to-back games, then missed the beginning of the regular season for 76ers after his knee did not respond as he hoped to return to the team. In the end, he returned on November 12 against Knicks, playing four games before he was missing another few weeks, and then in January 2025 he sat on a month with knees and foot problems before returning to the last stint in February.
It was a disastrous season not only for Embiid, but 76ers as a whole. Award -winning team agent, awarded agent, team, Paul Georgehas Was also closed for the season And he had his own struggles across the campaign, on average 16.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assistance and 1.8 stealing, while shooting 43% and 35% of the 3-point-point-point significantly down from his numbers with the number with the number Clippers During the last few seasons.
Star guard Tyrese Maxey He also fought his shooting and published a general career with a low brand of 43.7% and 33.7% of the 3rd lowest number of his newcomer year-playing in 52 games and potentially for the season with his own disease set. AND Jared McCain was easily a leading candidate about Rookie of the Year when suffered a torn meniscus In December and saw that his season also shortened injuries.
Hope Philadelphia will now be that all this loss will allow 76ers to maintain its first round, which is this year’s NBA draft. If the selection stays in the first six, Philadelphia retains it. If it is 7 to 30, it will go to Oklahoma City Thunder part of Al Horford-Danny Green Swap five years ago.
Entry to Thursday’s home game against Milwaukee BucksPhiladelphia lost nine games in a row, 15 of his last 17 and 26 of his last 30 – placed 76ers in fifth place in the lottery ranking, two games before Brooklyn network in the sixth. This means that two teams would have to jump 76ers in the Philadelphia rankings at least to lose their choice, and 76ers have about 65% chance to maintain it.
Hope will not only hang on this selection and add another young player with high up to the list, but also to get a collection of injured players back next season, and try to be a team capable of being a factor in the Play -off Eastern Conference.
However, these hopes will begin and end up with Embiid’s health as it has four years and more than $ 200 million remaining on his contract with 76ers.
