Joel Embiid has officially been suspended by the NBA for shoving a local newspaper columnist who disrespected his family. The Philadelphia 76ers superstar will miss his team’s next three games.

The earliest game Embiid can return is on Tuesday, November 12 against the New York Knicks at the Wells Fargo Center, the first NBA Cup game for both squads.

“Mutual respect is paramount to the relationship between players and media in the NBA,” said Joe Dumars, the NBA's Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations, in the league's announcement.  “While we understand Joel was offended by the personal nature of the original version of the reporter’s column, interactions must remain professional on both sides and can never turn physical.”

The NBA's press release stated that Embiid's suspension will begin “with the next NBA regular season game for which he is eligible and able to play.” According to ESPN's Shams Charania, Embiid's suspension will start with Wednesday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

When will Joel Embiid make 2024-25 season debut?

This past Friday, Embiid said that he's still working to trust his surgically repaired knee but that he has made good progress and should be able to return “pretty soon.” The 76ers were hoping that Embiid would be capable of returning as early as Wednesday's game against the Clippers. Philly has one other game to go on its current West Coast trip — a Friday showdown with the Los Angeles Lakers — before returning home to face the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday.

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Since Embiid was seemingly on track to have a shot at playing Wednesday, it seems likely that the Sixers will trigger the suspension for that game and have the big man return sooner. However, because Embiid is unlikely to play in back-to-backs anyway, and thus was already going to play against the Knicks or the Cavs and not both, the team could opt to wait, giving Embiid a little bit longer of a runway before making his season debut.

The Philadelphia 76ers are off to a 1-5 start to the 2024-25 season. Paul George made his season debut and looked solid. Now, Philly hopes its other veteran star can return to the court as soon as possible.