PHILADELPHIA — Moments after a 144-114 loss to the New York Knicks completed a four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday night, Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid said he finally trusts the left knee that has limited him for most of the past two seasons.
“I’m as confident as I’ve ever been,” the 32-year-old center told reporters. “If we keep following the same plan, I won’t have to think about it anymore.”
Health history clouds stellar career
Embiid has appeared in 490 regular-season games over 10 playing seasons, an average of 49 per year, after missing his first two NBA campaigns entirely. A left knee problem restricted him to 19 games last season and just 38 this year.
This postseason added fresh hurdles. An emergency appendectomy a month ago sidelined the reigning MVP for 17 days, and he missed Game 2 against New York with hip and ankle soreness. Head coach Nick Nurse said the center “worked his ass off” simply to suit up in the series.
Brief peak, abrupt fall
Embiid delivered perhaps the best three-game stretch of his playoff career in the opening round, steering Philadelphia from a 3-1 deficit to a Game 7 win over Boston. The comeback made the 76ers the fourth lower-seeded team in league history to erase such a gap.
Late in that deciding game, teammate Tyrese Maxey collided with Embiid’s legs. The big man was never fully healthy afterward, laboring through three contests against New York and sitting out one. He finished the playoffs with averages of 24.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists in seven games.
Looking ahead, not rehabbing
For the first time in two off-seasons, Embiid said he expects to focus on skill work instead of rehabilitation. “I’m looking at next year and being more available,” he noted, adding that personal accolades will follow if he stays on the court.
The 76ers were overwhelmed Sunday as the Knicks buried 12 of their first 13 three-point attempts, stretching their playoff winning streak to seven. Philadelphia has now fallen in the second round six times in Embiid’s nine postseason appearances, and the franchise’s conference-final drought reached 25 years.
“They threw haymakers early and kept throwing them,” forward Paul George said. Embiid conceded, “Tonight they were just better,” before calling for improvement “from ownership to coaches to players.”
Source: ESPN
