Sixers' Joel Embiid Could Miss Monday's Game vs. Pacers
As the first half of the 2020-2021 NBA season winds down, the Philadelphia 76ers are beginning to get a little exhausted and slightly banged up. When it comes to Sixers All-Star center Joel Embiid, the good news is that he's been relatively healthy all season long despite him missing a couple of games throughout the year.
In past seasons, Embiid's been known to miss stretches of games due to several significant injuries. This season, back tightness has been his only consistent injury, and it hasn't been bad enough for Embiid to miss consecutive games.
Lately, Embiid's back has felt fine, but now he's dealing with another minor setback. During Saturday night's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Embiid seemed to have tweaked his ankle early on in the first half. As the big man grabbed at it during a timeout, he received some medical attention from the team's trainers.
But his setback didn't keep him off the court. Embiid ended up finishing the game after playing in 40 minutes in the overtime loss to the Cavaliers on Saturday. He wrapped up the matchup with 42 points, 13 rebounds, six assists, a steal, and two blocks.
Although Embiid finished Saturday's game without any issues, the four-time All-Star center is questionable to play in Monday night's game against the Indiana Pacers. Per the Sixers' Sunday night injury report, Embiid is dealing with ankle soreness after rolling it early on against the Cavs over the weekend.
Missing Monday's game would mark the second matchup the 76ers play against the Pacers without Embiid. On January 31, the Sixers traveled to Indiana with Embiid, but the big man was ruled out of the matchup due to back tightness.
Although Philly looked lost without him for most of the matchup, the Sixers formed an amazing second-half comeback to win the game, with Tony Bradley and Dwight Howard filling in for the veteran All-Star. The Sixers likely won't decide on Embiid's playing status until closer to tip-off, so right now, the situation remains unclear.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.
