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Throughout his entire 19-year playing career in the NBA, former Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce was commonly referred to as “The Truth” but the current ESPN basketball analyst nearly told one big, fat lie on Sunday night.
While discussing the impact that Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid’s multi-week injury absence would have on the team, Pierce turned to their first game without Embiid Sunday against the Spurs as a primary example of why he should be considered a frontrunner for the league’s MVP award.
“When I look at the end score of this game, what this tells me is, that Joel Embiid is definitely playing at an MVP level, because when he’s the one player you’re missing, and you lose by this many points…” Pierce started to say, while talking with ESPN Sunday host Maria Taylor. “… I mean they won. They won! Oh, I’m sorry. That’s right, they did win.”
“In fact, the 76ers have won three straight by 20 (points)” Taylor said.
“Well he might not be on that MVP list. I thought San Antonio beat them. I’ve got to get new glasses,” Pierce joked.
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Pierce Says He’s ‘Very Concerned’ About Embiid’s Injury
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GettyPhiladelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid suffers an injury during a road bout with the Washington Wizards.
Though the Sixers 134-99 walloping of the Spurs on Sunday got the squad off to a good start without their MVP candidate, Pierce discussed Embiid’s injury ripple effect on the team again Monday, this time on ESPN’s “The Jump” with Rachel Nichols and Kendrick Perkins.
In response to Perkins saying that Embiid’s injury would not alter his MVP candidacy, Pierce was quick to disagree.
“I’m very concerned about this injury because for one, he’s always been injured and two, I’ve had a bone bruise in my knee and I’ll tell you what, there’s no timetable on this. Bone bruises in the knee, mine took eight months to heal,” Pierce said.
“Wow. But you played on it?” Nichols asked.
“Yeah I played on it, but it took eight months to heal,” the 2021 Basketball Hall of Fame finalist said. “I had no lift, and it’s different for a bigger guy who carries more weight. Look, it gave out on me at times. There were times when I couldn’t walk up the stairs. Some people say they’d rather have a break than a bone bruise.”
Embiid in Midst of Career Season at Time of Injury
In a seven-year, five-season career that has been marred by numerous injuries yet featured plenty of star play, Embiid – who turned 27 on Tuesday – had arguably had no better start to a campaign than this winter. The former number three overall pick and native of Cameroon is currently averaging career bests in nearly every offensive category.
Among the standout numbers are 32.6 minutes and 1.2 steals per contest, while showcasing shooting percentages of 52.5, 42.2, and 85.9 from the field, three-point land, and the free throw line respectively. Embiid is also scoring a career-high 29.9 points per game, while grabbing 11.5 rebounds (third-best) and contributing 3.3 assists (second-best) per game.
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