Joel Embiid is one of the most dominant players in the NBA when healthy. Unfortunately for him and the Philadelphia 76ers, he isn't healthy all that often. It's even gotten to the point where he has missed just as many games throughout his NBA as he has played (485), and it's fair to wonder where it will go from here.
In a recent episode of "The Bill Simmons Podcast," Simmons and The Ringer's Rob Mahoney spoke about the possibility of Embiid missing a 500th game before playing a 500th game. And in doing so, Mahoney perfectly summed up what this would mean for the one-time NBA MVP.
"I'm saddened by most things surrounding Joel Embiid, especially if it does end up being 500 games missed first. It would be a fair representation of what his career has been for the most part, but yeah, I'm gonna be pretty bummed out about that," Mahoney said.
Injuries have plagued Joel Embiid's entire NBA career
Unfortunately for Embiid, dealing with injuries isn't a new thing for him.
In his lone season at Kansas, he played 28 games, but he missed the 2014 Big 12 tournament and NCAA tournament because of a stress fracture in his back. However, he also missed time during the regular season due to back and knee injuries.
Embiid's injuries were such a concern that there were legitimate talks of him sliding in the 2014 NBA Draft despite his talent and potential. The 76ers ultimately drafted him third overall. And while this was the right call considering, for what it's worth, he has lived up to his pre-draft hype when on the court, it was a huge risk at the time.
However, Embiid missed the first two seasons of his NBA career due to a broken bone in his right foot that needed multiple surgeries. And since then, it's unfortunately been more of the same. He has missed a ton of time due to knee, ankle, and foot injuries. And he's currently on the shelf because of an oblique strain.
The Cameroon native has played 65 or more games in a season just twice. He played just 39 in 2023-24 and just 19 the year after. And with a little less than a month left in the season, he has only appeared in 33 games for Philadelphia in 2025-26.
Embiid is a fantastic big man who makes a huge impact every time he is on the court. But unfortunately for the recently turned 32-year-old, the best ability is availability in the eyes of many. And as has been the case for over a decade, this is one area of his game that just can't seem to be ironed out.