Rivers Highlights Part of Embiid's Game His Injury Will Affect Most

Late last week, Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers wrapped up their Game 3 matchup against the Toronto Raptors on the road with a thrilling overtime

Late last week, Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers wrapped up their Game 3 matchup against the Toronto Raptors on the road with a thrilling overtime victory.

While Embiid was happy to get the victory, the big man revealed after the game that he was battling a bit of a setback as he was dealing with pain in his thumb.

Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the Sixers feared Embiid might've torn a ligament in his thumb. MRI results from Sunday confirmed that was true.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Embiid will undergo surgery at some point to repair the torn ligament in his thumb, but that won't happen until after the playoff run. While it's a positive sign Embiid will continue to battle with his teammates for the rest of the postseason, his head coach Doc Rivers knows that playing through the pain will be an uphill battle as he's been in a similar position during his playing days.

"I’ve had the injury, and it’s a painful injury," said Rivers before Game 5 on Monday night. "That’s what this whole thing is. You know, I did it exactly the same way. I did it the day before Game 1 at the beginning of the playoffs. You play through it. It’s no fun to play through, but the pain comes and goes. I will say that with the injury, the stability of the thumb is the whole key. I don’t even think it’s a pain thing. It’s more what can you do with it? I think he’ll be good.”

Rivers doesn't think Embiid's latest setback will affect his game entirely, but he did highlight one area from his experience that could be more difficult for the big man to thrive now that he's battling a torn ligament in his thumb. 

“For me, it was just passing," Rivers explained. "That’s when you use your thumbs, you know? I think honestly that may affect him in the same way a little bit. Other than that, you just go out and play, and you forget about it, and you go play.”

Embiid and the Sixers are set to take the floor once again on Monday night for their Game 5 matchup. A win for Philadelphia would send the 76ers to the second round for the second-straight season. A loss would force a Game 6 in Toronto later this week. For Philadelphia, they hope Embiid's setback won't be enough to prevent him from helping send the Raptors back to Toronto to begin their offseason.

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