Like 2016 Jahlil Okafor, 2017 Joel Embiid Knee Ends Season

Philadelphia 76ers rookie center Joel Embiid, in pattern horrifyingly similar to Jahlil Okafor, season is over. Meniscus tear in his knee thought to be more serious than initially believed

Philadelphia 76ers rookie center Joel Embiid is following the pattern of Jahlil Okafor.  No he is still defensively quite adept.  No, he is not a sudden name being tossed around in 29 various trade rumors.

Joel Embiid had a bruised knee later diagnosed as a meniscus tear later declared to be more serious and will end his season prematurely.

The news is sobering to a team, and city, that waited nearly three years to set his health on track. It’s disheartening to a fanbase who had to cherish each meted out “minutes restriction load restriction” appearance of Joel Embiid’s rookie season.

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Destiny Won’t Be Denied

In the end, no amount of cautiousness nor limits could contain his star potential, just as no about of cautiousness nor limits could protect him from another injury in a very physical game.

Will the Philadelphia 76ers fans EVER get a break? Let’s break this down a bit, as many fans are openly distraught and upset.

Medical Professional Conservative

The Medical profession, as a whole, is conservative in their diagnosis. Risk is avoided.  It’s better to set a conservative pattern of recovery and be pleasantly surprised than presume an optimistic pattern to recovery and be disappointed.

There is a lot at stake. The Philadelphia 76ers franchise is banking on the health of Ben Simmons, and Joel Embiid. With so much at stake for the team, that is amplified among the medical community weighing in on the proper treatment.

Imagine the reputation of a “renowned world expert in the field” suggesting the team give Embiid a couple of aspirin and call him/her in the morning.  If all is well? Meh.  If anything goes wrong? Lawsuit, medical malpractice, and a city filled with passionately angry fans ready to burn down a medical office building with the “quack” still inside.

Philadelphia 76ers Are Protecting Their Investment

The Philadelphia 76ers have taken a unique approach in the handling of Joel Embiid. He was drafted third in the 2014 NBA Draft despite a full medical history of reasons why he should fall out of the top ten. The team hired the best sports medicine expert in the field in David T. Martin. The front office knew the team had “their guy” and began to unfold a championship infrastructure as he rehabbed.

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But Joel Embiid did not heal according to plan. In fact, the foot that defined his NBA Draft slot threatened to derail his NBA career before it ever happened.

What followed was some of the shrewdest quick action by any professional sports team.  The team scheduled a second surgery, and then rehabbed Joel Embiid under very restrictive monitoring and conditions.  His foot healed, and is healthy today.

Aspetar Fixed The Way Embiid Trained And Played

But Joel Embiid did not just work a treadmill.  The team sent him to Aspetar Clinic in Qatar where he was immersed in reeducating his body how to train and perform, and monitoring his stress points and body movements.

But a knee injury can undo all that expensive re-education.  The human body will compensate for pain in one area of the body by rerouting the workload to healthier muscles. If you have ever had a sore back, you know just how quickly the body does this.

To a professional athlete like Joel Embiid, this can be very perilous.  His body, at 7-foot-2, generate far more torque than a 6-foot-4 player.  A sore knee will cause Joel Embiid to transfer more stress to his feet to compensate.  On that alone it makes perfect sense to shut Embiid down for the remainder of the year.

Philadelphia 76ers Have Reason To Be Cautious

The news of Ben Simmons foot has undoubtedly caused a rippling effect in the bias of decision makers on the Philadelphia 76ers right now.  The Philadelphia 76ers are 26th in the NBA standing right now.  Ignoring any effect of the NBA lottery, the team stands to pick at the fifth slot in the 2017 NBA Draft, a draft which is loaded with talent in the opinions of virtually everyone in the know.

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Despite the surge of success from the team in 2017 calendar year, the team has virtually no chance to make the playoffs.

So the question is: what do the Philadelphia 76ers have to gain by playing Joel Embiid this season any further?  The answer is nothing.  Rest him. Fix him.  Without Ben Simmons, this team has proven it has some juice on the roster.

For now, the wisest course of action is to remain patient for just a little longer.

Waiting on Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid for the 2018 already assures this team will be even better next season. With the team sitting on one or two first round picks, and four second round picks in the 2017 NBA Draft, the team will be even more loaded next year.

Not Fragile, But Frugal

In the end, there will be a myriad of disappointed fans comment about the fragility of Joel Embiid. Some may be respected members of the Philadelphia 76ers brain trust.

I understand that sentiment.

Others will be those who have waited for a downturn in the Philadelphia 76ers fortunes to chime in once more.  Trolls who have plagued Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers for the past three seasons will now scurry out to get their licks in now.  Pay them no mind.

There is a method to the madness on this decision.   The team is plainly improved, and there are just a handful of players to thank. There are few if any players on the team right now I would consider “dead weight”.  The only expiring contract on the team is that of Sergio Rodriguez. Whether the team elects to retain his services next year is another debate.

For all the “Trust The Process” mantras recited in the past three years, it’s time to dust it off once more. There is a light at the end of the tunnel now. Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and even Dario Saric proved that.

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“Wait until next year” will soon be over.  You’ll see.  Just wait until next year to find out for yourself.