Joel Embiid sat out the start of the 2024-25 season despite playing in the 2024 Paris Olympics and not undergoing any offseason surgeries.
The mysterious turn of events led to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Marcus Hayes questioning Embiid’s conditioning and commitment to the grind. Embiid would respond by engaging in a physical altercation with the reporter, leading to a suspension that further derailed the 76ers.
On Sunday, Embiid played a rare game — his fifth of the season — as the Sixers pulled off a 108-100 win over the Bulls. After the win, Embiid opened up about the mysterious nature of his knee injury, confirming that he’s not dealing with any structural damage but rather a swelling that his medical staff has been unable to diagnose.
“Depressing,” Embiid told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps of his inability to play consistently. “Just trying to figure it out. There’s no injury. Just between the swelling … we’ve got to get it figured out. That’s it. I’ve been saying it for the last few months. It’s been extremely depressing. It’s something that hasn’t been figured out, and it’s been extremely annoying, because I would love to play every single game.”
It should be noted that Clippers star Kawhi Leonard dealt with a similar knee inflammation during the 2024 playoffs, an issue that held him out of the Paris Olympics and the start of the 2024-25 season. Much like Embiid, Leonard’s doctors confirmed that he wasn’t dealing with structural damage even as his knee swelled up repeatedly.
One can’t help but sympathize with Embiid, who faced severe backlash for declaring his intention to not play in back-to-back games this season. It’s clear now that the 7-footer had a valid reason to make the comments. After Sunday’s win, Embiid confirmed that he’d play every game if not for his inflamed knee.
“I wish I could have been playing from the beginning,” Embiid said. “I would love to play every single game, every single minute, but sometimes your body just says, ‘No,’ and you can’t do nothing about it. All you can do is just keep working to fix it and get better.”
Many of Embiid’s critics made blanket statements without truly understanding the complexity of his knee issue. As Embiid himself confirmed, “there’s no injury” but a swelling regardless, leaving both himself and the Sixers medical staff bewildered by the situation.
Perhaps Embiid’s critics were a bit too harsh.
