It appears that the story for Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid might be going from bad to worse.
His recovery from foot surgery started off well but Embiid did hit some roadblocks. At the beginning of the year, he did have a reported small issue with the coaching staff and his weight. He denied those reports but he then suffered a setback have some setbacks in the second half of the season but he got back on track.
Over the weekend it was reported that Embiid had a set back with his foot recovery and Sixers nation immediately became concerned. The concern now could be that Embiid will miss next season.
Following from Philadelphia Inquirer’s Keith Pompey.
76ers center Joel Embiid may not be available to play at the start of the NBA season after the latest setback in the healing of his right foot, an NBA source said Sunday. There’s also a legitimate chance that the 7-footer could miss the entire season.
Another source, an Eastern Conference executive, said Sunday that the 76ers’ rebuilding plan is doomed if Embiid is unable to remain healthy or play at a high level.
“He was their guy,” said the executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “They were hoping he was a franchise player. If he’s not a franchise player, their whole plan is gone. . . . If Embiid can’t play or if he can’t reach a superstar level, their plan is really in trouble.”
Another league source said Embiid’s latest setback would not influence the Sixers’ plan in the June 25 draft. He said the team still would use the third overall pick on the best available player regardless of position.
Embiid is not expected to participate in Summer League.
“I don’t think anyone [around the league] is surprised at all,” the NBA executive said. “Cleveland and Milwaukee [which picked first and second in last summer’s draft] would not consider him because of the foot and back injuries.”
Embiid’s injury issues are a big cause for concern for both the fans and organization. If Embiid would sit out next season, he would all but join some rarified air of young stars who were forced to sit out his first 2 NBA seasons. Blake Griffin and Nerlens Noel missed only their first full NBA season but Embiid missing his first 2 could mean some issues in his career going forward.
Foot injuries with big men are the worst. Kevin Durant’s 2014-15 season was robbed by a foot injury and Yao Ming’s career was forced to end due to a foot injury. If Embiid can’t find a way to come back from this, the future market of him being a potential game-changing big man will die and his value could be in jeopardy.
