Philadelphia 76ers star big man Joel Embiid has been facing questions about his durability and his ability to be available in games for the Sixers on a regular basis. To prepare for the 2020-21 season, the big fella got serious by hiring a nutritionist and taking drastic measures in order to lead his team.
In Friday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, he had 37 points and 11 rebounds to lead them to a 118-94 win. Normally, that would be a ho-hum thing, but this came with him battling ongoing back issues.
“It’s been pretty tight,” said Embiid. “You gotta keep pushing. I want us to build momentum. We got to keep winning these games. Every single one of them and nights like tonight can help me in the long run when I don’t have to play 30 minutes or more. It’s tight, but that’s not an excuse. You just got to keep it going.”
In order to put himself in a position to play, Embiid had to go through plenty of treatment. The big fella has been working hard to make sure he is able to be there for his team. He is their best player, and he has to be the one to lead the way.
“You do everything you can,” he explained. “Massages, treatment, lifting, cold tub, you just do you know it around the clock. The last treatment that I had last night (Thursday) was around 1 a.m. Even if it means not sleeping, just making sure that the body is right, obviously, sleeping helps a lot, too.”
The important part is that he continues to get treatment. Being 7-feet tall, all of that can put a lot of stress on his muscles and his joints and it can be tough to be healthy, but the proper treatment can get him ready to go.
“Treatment is the first thing,” he continued. “Other stuff like that matters and you gotta keep on going. It’s hard, but that’s what we get paid for. You gotta do your job.”
This has all been a new process for Embiid. All of the nutritionists and getting massages as well has helped him stay on the floor. It seems that even though he has been questionable for a lot of games, the star big man has been available more often than not.
“I’m still going back, talking to the nutritionists, and the people that have been helping me,” he added. “The goal was to start that, and it’s not gonna happen right away. If I had to give a percentage of how I feel, especially walking toward the goal that I have, I wouldn’t even say that I’m at 50%. I still got a long way to go and it’s gonna take a while.”
It’s always going to be tough to keep to a diet and continue to be in shape constantly, but in the end, it should be worth it for him and the team.
“You got to keep on doing the right things, obviously, as time goes it keeps on getting better,” he finished. “I just got to keep that mentality of doing the right thing and I’m sure in the end, it’s going to end up paying off.”
The Sixers continue the road trip on Sunday against the Indiana Pacers.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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