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Joel Embiid's All-Star Game Status Remains in Question

Joel Embiid is reportedly not in Utah on Saturday ahead of Sunday's game.
Justin Grasso|
Joel Embiid's All-Star Game Status Remains in Question
Joel Embiid's All-Star Game Status Remains in Question

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Philadelphia 76ers

Joel Embiid’s playing status for the 2023 NBA All-Star game is currently in question. Last week, the Philadelphia 76ers’ big man noted that the foot soreness he’s been dealing with left him questioning whether or not he could play in the big game.

Following the Sixers’ Wednesday night win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, Embiid reiterated that his playing status is up in the air.

“I’m not healthy. I haven’t been healthy for the last three weeks. I was just trying to get to the All-Star break without missing games and stuff,” said Embiid. “I felt like I’ve reached a point where I really need to follow the doctor’s advice. Back then, he said I should’ve been sitting for two weeks. So, I’ll just see how the next few days go, and we’ll go from there.”

All-Star weekend is here, and mostly all of the participants are in Utah preparing for Sunday night’s matchup. However, Embiid is reportedly not one of them.

According to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Keith Pompey, Embiid is not in Salt Lake City, Utah. While that could be an indication he won’t play in Sunday’s game, Pompey added that Embiid is “expected” to arrive in time for the All-Star game.

Embiid’s been battling issues with his foot all season long. For the last 12 games, the Sixers’ big man has been on the team’s injury report listed as questionable due to foot soreness. During that stretch, Embiid missed just one game on January 21 against the Sacramento Kings.

It seems the trend of Embiid being a game-time decision will continue in Salt Lake City for the All-Star game. If the big man decides he will go through and play after all, he’ll be among the ten starters, as he was upgraded as an injury replacement earlier this week. 

The game is set to tip-off at 8 PM ET. on Sunday.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s Philadelphia 76ers On SI Network. Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia Threads: @JGrassoMedia

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