A slimmer Embiid focused on “whatever it takes” to be healthy in playoffs this time around originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Joel Embiid is determined to avoid more playoff injury déjà vu.
For many years, Embiid’s default stance on questions about his health was that he would push to play in almost any circumstance. After yet another season in which he plowed through postseason woes, the Sixers’ 30-year-old superstar center appears to have a different outlook.
“I think I lost about 25, 30 (pounds this offseason). I still have a ways to go,” Embiid said Monday at the Sixers’ media day in Camden, New Jersey. “Still want to lose more, but it is a process. (President of basketball operations Daryl Morey) would tell you this: As soon as we lost last year, I texted him and I said, ‘We have to do whatever it takes to make sure that, in the postseason, I’m healthy. ‘
“This year, there’s no agenda — All-Star, All-NBA, there’s none of that. It’s whatever it takes to make sure I get to that point and I’m ready to go. For basically every year of my career, I’ve been hurt in the playoffs. I think that’s the goal. It’s all about doing whatever it takes to get there.
“Physically, I’m fine. I’m not where I want to be, and I know I have their support and they all want the same thing. Until I’m at that point where they feel I’m ready to go, I’m sure they’ll hold me back. Like I said, the focus is on whatever it takes to get to that stage and be healthy. I think with the guys we have and what I can bring to the table, we have a pretty good chance.”
Embiid returned last year from a left knee lateral meniscus injury to play five of the Sixers’ final seven regular-season games. He clearly wasn’t at his physical peak in the playoffs, though, dealing with multiple injury scares and an unfortunate case of Bell’s palsy this caused migraines and weakness in the muscles on the left side of his face.
Despite all that, he scored 50 points in the Sixers’ Game 3 over the Knicks and averaged 33.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.5 blocks in the team’s six-game first-round series loss.
The Sixers’ hope is that Embiid is both available and a little better in series-deciding moments — less expensive, tired turnovers; more lift on his late jumpers; let no one hesitate about what his body is capable of doing.
“We’re going to be really smart about this,” Morey said. “We are focusing on April, May, June. It doesn’t mean the team doesn’t matter now either, but we’ll be very smart about how we manage him during the season. There will be plenty of information as we figure out how everything works with the entire roster.
“But with Joel specifically … we actually have quite a few guys that we think we need to figure out how we manage them over the course of the season, while still maintaining a high level of play, and keep our eye on the prize while we do that.”
Embiid is under contract with the Sixers through the 2028-29 season and said he wants to spend his entire career in Philadelphia.
For his first full season in his 30s, he’ll have two All-Star teammates in Tyrese Maxey and Paul George.
“We’ve got a lot of new guys, so we’ve got to get everybody on the same page and it’s going to take time,” Embiid said. “There may be growing pains, but I think we have guys that just fit in on and off the court. That’s what you need when it comes to team building and culture. … I feel like my job this year is to empower those guys, especially Tyrese. I think there is another step he can take and he will take it.
“I’m going to go out there and just let him be the guy because I know that at some point, when it comes down to it, he’s going to be useful. Same with Paul and some of the other guys we added – Caleb (Martin), Guerschon (Yabusele). We added a lot of guys; it feels like we have a whole new team.”
Although his long-established habit is to shoot loads of free throws, drain mid-range jumpers and generally pile up points, Embiid didn’t emphasize any of that on Monday.
“I really trust these guys to figure it out,” he said, “and to just use myself as a decoy to allow them to just be themselves. … As long as we win, it doesn’t matter what the role is and what I’ve done. ( Winning) is what matters.”
