Embiid says he’s not himself on the floor as left knee ‘problem’ persists

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Embiid says he’s not himself on the floor as left knee ‘problem’ persists originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Joel Embiid played in his 18th game of the season Thursday night vs. the Celtics.

As everyone who watches him and the Sixers can see, his availability alone does not mean that everything is fine.

Embiid sat out the fourth quarter of the 20-35 Sixers’ blowout loss to the Celtics. In 27 minutes, he finished with 15 points on 3-for-9 shooting, four assists and three rebounds.

At his locker, he answered questions about the left knee he’s been trying to manage all season. Has it prevented him from doing certain things on the floor?

“I don’t know,” Embiid said. “I’m sure you can figure it out. The way I was playing a year ago is not the way I’m playing right now and it sucks. But I believe I probably need to fix the problem and I’ll be back at that level.

“But it’s hard to have the trust when you’re not yourself. I’m not as dominant as I was a couple months ago, but that doesn’t mean I still can’t have a lot of impact on the game. Just me being out there, I think it helps a lot — just my presence, my ability to attract double teams, getting guys more shots.

“But my dominant self, I’ll get there. It’s just tough because you know you can do so much more. There’s no excuses; it’s just the way it is. Just got to keep finding ways to figure it out and get better.”

Embiid underwent a procedure on his left lateral meniscus last February. He returned for the end of the regular season and the Sixers’ first-round playoff loss to the Knicks, then won a gold medal with Team USA at the Paris Olympics. Since then, he’s been unable to stay on the floor for an extended stretch.

Though Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey told reporters on Feb. 7 that the Sixers’ long-term prognosis on Embiid’s knee is optimistic, the setbacks, swelling and frustration don’t suggest the problem’s been “fixed.”

Asked if the All-Star break was helpful, Embiid’s response was, “A little bit.”

“I’m OK,” he said. “Still managing. Got to keep going, hope…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/embiid-says-hes-not-himself-052553604.html

Author : NBC Sports Philadelphia

Publish date : 2025-02-21 05:25:00

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