The Philadelphia 76ers were shorthanded over the last few weeks of the season as they had to play without the services of center Joel Embiid. The first-time All-Star suffered an orbital fracture to his left eye as well as concussion in a game against the New York Knicks and has been out since March 28th. The center has been targeting a return for the playoffs, but had to get clearance from the team's medical staff before he could do so. After being ruled doubtful to play on Wednesday afternoon, the Sixers announced that Embiid would be able to participate in Thursday's Game 3 against the Miami Heat barring a setback.
Per Keith Pompey of the Philly Inquirer:
Y’all better get ready to see @JoelEmbiid play tonight. He’ll play baring any setback during his pregame warmup.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) April 19, 2018
According to Shams Charania of The Vertical, Embiid will be wearing a protective mask and goggles.
76ers star Joel Embiid is expected to play in Game 3 against the Heat tonight, barring setback — likely with mask and goggles.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 19, 2018
Pompey adds that Embiid will not be on a minutes restriction in his first game back in about three weeks, and the amount of time he sees on the court will depend on his conditioning. Since the injury he sustained was to his face, Embiid should have been able to keep his conditioning close to where it was, but we'll see how he responds to actual game action.
.@JoelEmbiid will not be on a minutes restriction. His condition will dictate how long the #Sixers will play him.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) April 19, 2018
According to an earlier report from Pompey, if Embiid were to play and potentially take an elbow to the left eye, it could end up causing permanent damage. One would think that a career-changing injury of that potential nature simply isn't worth the risk, but Embiid really wants to play and help his team regain home-court advantage.
Embiid played in a career-high 63 games this regular season, averaging 22.9 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game on 48.3 percent shooting from the field and 30.8 percent from beyond the arc.
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