The Philadelphia 76ers are off to a 1–3 start, due in large part to stars Joel Embiid and Paul George not yet playing due to injuries.
George played twice in the preseason, suffering a bone bruise in his hyperextended left knee during his second game. However, Embiid didn't appear at all during the preseason while recovering from a left knee injury.
Between that and an injury history that's limited him to an average of 54 games per season during his eight-year NBA career, fans and media have become skeptical regarding how much Embiid actually wants to play. That doubt is developing into a narrative as a 2024-25 season that carried championship expectations is off to an early disappointment.
Earlier this week, the Sixers were fined $100,000 by the NBA for making "inconsistent" statements about Embiid's health status.
After practice on Friday, Embiid responded to growing fan and media dissatisfaction, pushing back against the notion that he doesn't want to play and reminding fans that he's played with serious injuries before, coming back before he probably should have.
"I've broken my face twice, I came back early with the risk of losing my vision, had broken fingers, I still came back," Embiid told reporters, <a data-i13n="cpos:7;pos:1" href="https://www.phillyvoice.com/sixers-news-analysis-joel-embiid-knee-injury-report-update/">via Philly Voice's Adam Aaronson</a>. "When I see people saying 'he doesn't want to play,' I've done way too much. I've done way too much for this city, putting myself at risk for people to be saying that. So, I do think it's bulls***."
Embiid went on to single out Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes, who wrote on Wednesday that the Sixers should offer fans a refund for games in which he doesn't play. Hayes went on to call Embiid "the least-dependable superstar in the history of the game" and accused the Sixers of perpetrating fraud against their fans by selling tickets to games in which the team knows Embiid won't play.
Head coach Nick Nurse also faced that criticism prior to Wednesday's 105–95 loss to the Detroit Pistons, asked by WIP's Howard Eskin if it was "fair to paying customers" to not know if the Sixers' stars were going to play.
"They are listed as out. Within the league guidelines, we have to list them," Nurse responded. "That's why the league has those guidelines. So we list them that way. We don't have all the information all the time. The reason you do it the day before is you want to make sure."
Nurse said that Embiid and George would participate in practice on Thursday and Friday, and would have a better idea of their status after that. But Embiid told reporters that he will not play in Saturday's matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies. George will remain out, as well.
ESPN's Shams Charania reported that Embiid has participated in 5-on-5 scrimmages, which backs up the Sixers' contention that he is getting ready to play. Yet the team wants to make sure he is 100% healthy before letting him take the court.
That isn't likely to appease fans who bought tickets to games, believing they would see Embiid and George play rather than sit on the bench in civilian clothes.