Sixers' Playoff Hopes Take a Hit With Star Center's Oblique Strain

The Sixers won the battle against the Miami Heat on Thursday, but they might have lost the war.

Star center Joel Embiid suffered an injury to his midsection in the first half of the Sixers' 124-117 victory, although he gutted through it to finish with 26 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes, including the game-clinching three-pointer. However, he reported "increasing soreness in his right side" on Saturday morning and did not practice, according to Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice.

After Embiid underwent an MRI, the Sixers announced that he will miss at least their next three games due to a strained right oblique. He's set to be re-evaluated after their back-to-back in the middle of the week.

The Sixers have plenty of practice playing without Embiid this year, but his absence couldn't come at a much worse time. They're in a dogfight for the final guaranteed playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and their next two games are against two of the best teams in the NBA.

Can the Sixers shake off their Embiid-less woes?

Embiid recently missed five games due to right knee and shin injuries, and the Sixers went 1-4 in his absence. That included losses to the Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans coming out of the All-Star break.

With Embiid back in the fold, the Sixers blasted the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday before sneaking past the Heat on Thursday. They have two tough tests awaiting them during his upcoming absence, though.

On Sunday, the Sixers head to Boston to face the hated Celtics, who will be mostly at full strength. Jayson Tatum is still out due to his torn Achilles, and Baylor Scheierman is questionable due to a left thumb fracture, but end-of-bench players Max Shulga and Amari Williams are the only other two players listed on their injury report.

Two nights later, the Sixers return home to face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, who currently sit second in the Western Conference. Embiid dropped 70 points on Wemby when the French phenom was a rookie, but he's become a worlds-destroying force in the two years since. The Sixers will have their hands full against him without Embiid. (So much for NBC Sports' throwback broadcast.)

Even if the Sixers get stomped by the Celtics and Spurs, the good news is that they face the tanking Utah Jazz at home on Wednesday. The Jazz recently announced that Lauri Markkanen will be out for the next two weeks, while Jaren Jackson Jr., Jusuf Nurkić and Walker Kessler are all done for the season. This should be a relative gimme, even without Embiid.

If Embiid isn't back by next weekend, though, the Sixers could be at further risk of slipping down the East standings. They have a two-game road trip against the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers starting Saturday, take on the Memphis Grizzlies on the second night of a back-to-back on Tuesday and then head back on the road to take on the East-leading Detroit Pistons on March 12.

If Embiid doesn't return at some point during that stretch, a 2-5 record over those seven games wouldn't be out of the question.

With the Sixers clinging to only a 1.5-game lead over the Orlando Magic for the No. 6 seed, every win and loss is especially critical at this time of year. The Sixers will need their star center back sooner than later, particularly with Paul George suspended until late March.

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Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.

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