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The Philadelphia 76ers are unsure whether they will have their star center Joel Embiid when they go up against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
In a tweet by Keith Pompey, Sixers coach Brett Brown was entirely non-committal on the status of Embiid. The big man very well could play, but he also could not.
#Sixers coach Brett Brown had a different stance one day after saying he expected Joel Embiid to return Saturday: "In relation to will he play Saturday against Golden State, we don't know that, and the fans should hear that. It's still completely up in the air. … "
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) March 1, 2019
Originally there were thoughts that Embiid might be ready to go against the Warriors, but his knee soreness is holding him out. This has been a trial for the Sixers with Boban Marjanovic also out with an injury.
If the Sixers are lucky, this is just a ploy so the uber-talented Warriors don't know how to plan for the game. Having Embiid can be game-changing for Philadelphia, and it is game plan-changing for Golden State.
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The Sixers are currently in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, and only a half game out of third place. With the Pacers trending in the wrong direction, a timely return of Embiid could help Philadelphia strike at the top of the conference.
Either way, there is little worry that the team will miss the playoffs. The 76ers stand 11 games above the eighth-place Hornets. Beyond that, the roster has enough talent to survive as long as they need to without Embiid.
Embiid will be a welcome sight when he comes back from this knee soreness. His 27.3 points and 13.5 rebounds per game are a great help to the lineup.
The way things look now, nobody knows quite how long it will be until that moment happens.
