The Philadelphia 76ers escaped with a tight win over the Boston Celtics away from home in their first game of the season, all thanks to the flashy performance turned in by both VJ Edgecombe and Tyrese Maxey, However, one thing that cannot evade the eyes of many is the well-documented struggles of Joel Embiid during that outing.
Playing in his first regular season game since February of last season, Embiid turned in a major stinker across the board. He played just 20 minutes and ended the night with four points, missing eight of his nine shots and corralling just six boards against Boston’s inexperienced big man rotation. He played so bad that Nick Nurse did not even bother putting him in the closing lineup.
Of course, this is only one game in the grand scheme of things, and Embiid is the kind of player who has always needed some ramp-up activity to get into rhythm. With a dominant performance anytime soon, this will all be forgotten. However, there is one question which should subsist in the minds of many.
Can Embiid really withstand the rigors of another full NBA season? For now, he is definitely not playing anywhere close to being at tip-top shape, but can he even get there anymore?
The 76ers have a pressing question to answer surrounding Joel Embiid
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer in this recent pod episode, the 76ers are questioning how much further along Embiid can get with his health and physicality. For now, things have improved due to the mere fact that he actually played in Game 1, but whether this is something that can persist over an entire campaign stands to be a dodgy proposition.
Embiid has played in just 58 games over the last two seasons, and concerns over his continuing viability as a centerpiece for the team have only become stronger. If Edgecombe keeps this up and Maxey continues to play at this level, the 76ers are going to start to rely less on Embiid, for better or for worse.
But it could also be out of necessity. So far, Embiid has shown little to convince fans that he can reprise his old dominant self, yet the 76ers might not need him to be anything like that. The dynamics with this team are already changing, but the truth of the matter is that the team still needs Embiid if they want a shot at contention.
Hopefully, Joel Embiid can get back to playing shape and start playing like the dominant star he probably still is. Otherwise, there will be continuing concerns over his status as a core piece moving forward.