No matter what the Philadelphia 76ers do from here on out, their success next season will be largely dependent on what ultimately transpires with their unerringly best player, Joel Embiid. As if things couldn’t get any clearer, last season proved that despite his red flags, he was still the best player on the roster, and that this franchise is not going anywhere without him performing at the peak of his powers.
That makes it all the more important for the 76ers to ensure that he gets back to playing capacity next season, which was something they entirely failed to even get close to in their previous campaign. Unfortunately, the tenor has not changed at all, with the superstar still afflicted by his seemingly degenerating knees.
To make matters worse, Philly’s brass has been tight-lipped about Embiid’s current status and progress in his return from injury, if there is one in the first place. Frankly, there has been almost nothing since he underwent surgery aside from glib motherhood statements from the front office, making his situation a mysterious and discouraging one.
At this rate, the 76ers are headed to a familiar and ugly territory as a ball club, especiallu with August not offering anything new so far with regard to Embiid.
The 76ers are headed to last season’s nightmare with the Joel Embiid situation still shrouded in mystery
Last season, Embiid’s playing status was a complete unknown after he sat out from all basketball activities after the Olympics. And despite the context being much different this time around, the result does not appear to be something any different.
The last tangible Embiid update came approximately three weeks ago, and it was definitely far from a positive one. Back then, the superstar himself said that there remains no timeline for his return to on-court activities, and that he hopes to be back sooner than later.
That is a pretty loose statement, though — one that is not any different from what Daryl Morey dished out around the 2025 NBA Draft. And even before that, the 76ers indulged in complete silence in the aftermath of EMbiid’s surgical procedure back in April.
Truth be told, it is far more likely to envision Embiid missing the start of the season. That was exactly what transpired last season, and one does not even need a crystal ball to infer what would happen to the team sans Embiid to kickstart their campaign.
Brace yourselves for what could very well be another uber-slow start for the Philadelphia 76ers next season. With their best player in Joel Embiid apparently not yet being in playing shape, there is no way he would be ready to commence the season. And that is most certainly an early nightmare scenario for the team, though far from unprecedented.