Getty Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid
Dealing with knee tendonitis and apparent consistent pain hasn’t stopped Joel Embiid from suiting up for the most part during the 2019 NBA Playoffs. While the Philadelphia 76ers topped the Brooklyn Nets during round one in five games, Embiid missed just one game due to the knee ailment. He played in Game 1 of the second-round series as well.
But it appears the Sixers star just can’t seem to catch a break currently in terms of his overall health. After logging 30 minutes during the team’s 108-95 loss against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday, there was little reason to believe his status would be in question for Game 2.
While that remains somewhat true, Embiid is now battling an illness ahead of Monday night’s game in Toronto. We’re going to take a look at the latest on Embiid’s status and impact it has on the Sixers starting lineup both with and without him.
Joel Embiid’s Status & Game 2 Injury Outlook
UPDATE: Embiid is expected to be available and in the starting lineup.
On a positive note, Embiid does not appear to be dealing with major issues relating to his knee ailment at this point. With that said, he’s still on the NBA injury report Monday, listed as probable due to gastroenteritis, which is a stomach flu. It does appear likely that Embiid will be able to play, though, but this could potentially impact his minutes if it’s severe.
As Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports pointed out, the Sixers star missed shootaround on Monday morning but is expected to play.
Joel Embiid (gastroenteritis) is not at shootaround this morning but is expected to play tonight. Sixers are calling him probable.
The Sixers are already down one other frontcourt player, as Mike Scott has been ruled out due to a heel contusion/plantar fasciitis. He also missed Game 1 of the series due to the same injury.
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76ers Roster & Starting Lineup vs. Raptors
*Notates expected starter
C: Joel Embiid (P)*, Greg Monroe, Boban Marjanovic, Amir Johnson
PF: Tobias Harris*, Jonah Bolden
SF: Jimmy Butler*, James Ennis, Jonathon Simmons
SG: JJ Redick*, Furkan Korkmaz, Zhaire Smith, Shake Milton
PG: Ben Simmons*, T.J. McConnell
Although there’s optimism around Embiid’s status, the Sixers are facing a tall task in Game 2. After losing the series opener and failing to create much of an issue for the Raptors, Brett Brown’s squad will need to figure out how to get the ball rolling on Monday.
Kawhi Leonard torched the Sixers to the tune of 45 points with 11 rebounds on 16-of-23 shooting while Pascal Siakam poured in 29 points with seven boards. As for the Sixers, Embiid struggled to get his shot to fall by making just 5-of-18 attempts and scoring 16 points with eight rebounds.
Tobias Harris had a decent game, scoring 14 points with 15 rebounds and six assists, but missed 11 of his 17 shot attempts. The Sixers shot just 39.3 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from beyond the arc, so getting shots to fall is a starting point, but slowing down Leonard and company needs to be a priority.
If for some reason Embiid is unable to go, the Sixers could opt to roll out Greg Monroe again. He started in place of the All-Star during the game he missed in the first round against the Brooklyn Nets.
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