The Philadelphia 76ers’ 127-101 win against the Wizards didn’t matter much on Friday night. Concern over Joel Embiid took over when the Sixers’ MVP contender fell awkwardly in the third quarter and left the game with an injury to his left knee. Embiid then underwent an MRI after traveling back to Philadelphia.
Fortunately, everyone can breathe easier now, as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Embiid’s MRI did not reveal any structural damage and he was diagnosed with a bone bruise – Wojnarowski noted in his full report that ACI and Embiid’s meniscus are fine.
Embiid is still expected to waste time on bone bruising, the sources said, but there is significant relief in Sixers that the injury is not much worse. https://t.co/ozcRTepMDe
– Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 13, 2021
Athletic’s Shams Charania reported even better news, adding that Embiid should lose just two to three weeks.
76ers MVP candidate Joel Embiid is expected to miss 2-3 weeks with a bone bruise on his left knee, sources said. @TheAthletic @Stadium.
– Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 13, 2021
We all know how important Embiid is to the Sixers. He has dominated at the MVP level this season, and now he will still be able to give Philly a chance to race in the playoffs. Individually, it’s great for Embiid that he can continue his onslaught of MVP (even if his case is hampered by losing more games) and play in front of Sixers fans when they return to the Wells Fargo Center.
The Sixers will obviously miss Embiid a lot and clinging to Seed # 1 will be much more difficult for now, but diverting your attention to just spending a few weeks without it is a relief, however. There are also some good points that they can focus on. Their bench has played well in the past two games, and Ben Simmons is expected to return against Spurs on Sunday after being out of the team for a seven-day quarantine due to contact tracking. Simmons made a leap this season and played the best basketball of his career in the five weeks leading up to the All-Star break. The Sixers will have at least one more aggressive and impactful Simmons to lead in the absence of Embiid – preferably with the bank continuing to improve their game as well.
Fortunately for the Sixers, they will not face many important opponents in their next games other than the Milwaukee Bucks on March 17th. In the next 10 days, they will have games against Spurs, Knicks (twice), Kings and Warriors. The biggest tests that Embiid could miss will be at the end of the month, when they face the Lakers, Clippers and Nuggets as the final three games to end March.