Sixers' Joel Embiid Set to Play vs. New Orleans Pelicans

The Philadelphia 76ers have cleared their All-Star center Joel Embiid for action on Friday night against the New Orleans Pelicans after being listed as questionable on the injury report in the afternoon.

Ever since going down with a knee injury at the start of the second half of the season, the Sixers have been cautious with Embiid as expected. 

Considering the big man thought his season was over before he was diagnosed with a bone bruise, the 76ers wanted to ensure they eased Embiid back into the swing of things after he missed ten-straight games.

Since his return to the court in early April, Embiid has only missed two matchups. At this point, the four-time All-Star feels a lot better and is no longer sporting a brace on his knee. Lately, the Sixers' success against inferior teams has allowed them to manage Embiid's minutes better.

But Embiid is still trying to find a balance between staying healthy and being ready for the playoffs. The Sixers center recently mentioned the pros and cons of getting extra rest during games before the playoffs.

"I think it's good, and it's not," Embiid explained. "I want to play as much as I can to make sure that I'm ready for the load in the playoffs when we get there. I'm going to play 36-38 minutes a game. So, I want to make sure that I'm ready. When we have games like that -- especially the last five games -- I only played three fourth quarters. So, when we get back, I gotta do my whole conditioning. It's great, but it's also something that's not good." 

The Sixers will have Embiid available for Friday night's game. Right now, it's unclear if the plan is to give him Saturday night's game off or not. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.