Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid has been in and out of action due to lingering back problems. According to Embiid, the back pains started after LeBron James' hard foul on him last month.
Per Chris Crouse of FortyEightMinutes, while Embiid called the ailment βnot alarming,β he pointed to the Los Angeles Lakers superstar as the culprit of his less-than-ideal situation.
Joel Embiid says his back woes this season started with the fall against the Lakers (and LeBronβs foul). Called the ailment βnot alarming.β#HereTheyCome | @FortyEightMins pic.twitter.com/OGcMLbRaAZ
β π²ππππ π. π²πππππ π (@ChrisWCrouse) February 18, 2021
Embiid had to leave the game against the Lakers for a few minutes but eventually came back. The 76ers won, 107-106. But since then, the 7'0β³ slotman from Cameroon started missing a few outings due to back issues.
LeBron with a foul on Embiid who goes down hard π³pic.twitter.com/buqvtyzb0a
β ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) January 28, 2021
Against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday, Embiid admitted to feeling uncomfortable. He, however, mustered his courage to finish the game. His efforts were not in vain as the Sixers won 118-113, snapping their three-game skid. Embiid finished with a near triple-double of 31 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists.
Joel Embiid on his back: "It was pretty tight, but I just wanted to make sure we got the win."
Said he wanted to give it a shot in the second half, but ends with, "I'll be fine."
β Rich Hofmann (@rich_hofmann) February 18, 2021
While Embiid doesn't seem too worried, it would be interesting to see how it will affect the Sixers' performance moving forward. They are on top of the Eastern Conference with a 19-10 record with Embiid being one of the heavy contenders for the MVP trophy.
From the looks of it, the Sixers are looking like the best version of themselves since becoming a legitimate postseason team a few years ago. It seems that coach Doc Rivers has found the perfect way to utilize the star duo of Embiid and Ben Simmons as well as the pieces around them.
But if Joel Embiid's back problems continue, will their relative success continue? Or will it be another disappointing season for the Sixers?
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