Joel Embiid’s incredible season has been hampered by injuries, and it has now taken a turn for the worse.
It was announced on Thursday that Embiid has a torn meniscus in his left knee. There is no set timetable for his return.
Embiid sustained the injury in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s 119-107 loss to the Golden State Warriors while chasing a loose ball. After being on the court clutching his knee for a while, he limped back to the locker room and did not return.
During the month of January, Embiid missed a total of five games, and it is likely that he will miss even more this month.
For Embiid to be eligible for the NBA’s postseason awards, he can only afford to miss five more games. The league recently established a requirement of a 65-game minimum for players hoping to be eligible for All-NBA and MVP honors.
Prior to the announcement of his injury, the NBA fined Philadelphia $75,000 for not promptly reporting that Embiid would not play on Jan. 27.
When healthy, Embiid leads the NBA in average points (35.3), in addition to contributing 11.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists.
