PHILADELPHIA–Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid had one of his roughest performances of the season on Thursday as he shot just 7-for-25 in a 110-105 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at home. Considering he was shooting 53.7% from the floor entering the contest, it was definitely an off night for the big fella.
When one considers that he has been dealing with left foot soreness all season, one has to wonder if the injury maybe crept back up on Thursday to throw him off. He has been saying that he needs time to heal up, but with the season being the way it is, he doesn’t have that opportunity.
“I feel pretty good,” he said after the win. “Like I said before the break, whatever it is, it’s all about rest and there’s a reason why I wasn’t part of Saturday (All-Star practice) because I wanted to make sure that I could get more rest and with this, it’s all about trying to get as much rest as possible.”
Embiid did have 19 rebounds, six assists, and six blocks as he was still able to have a really nice night and help Philadelphia rally from 17 down.
“It would have been nice to have actually two weeks off, but it’s the season,” Embiid added. “You can’t have that so you got to come back and keep going. So now it’s all about managing it and next time it comes along, take some time off and keep doing the same thing.”
On top of his foot injury, the big man was also dealing with a non-COVID illness. He was listed as probable shortly before the game and coach Doc Rivers mentioned pregame that he wasn’t at shootaround on Thursday morning.
“I’m good,” Embiid said when asked about his illness. “I don’t know what I had, but I’m good. Just happy we got the win.”
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