Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid finally made his much-awaited return to action on Tuesday night following a two-month injury absence. The reigning NBA MVP stepped up in a major way, leading his team to a crucial 109-105 victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Embiid’s return, however, has now been clouded by controversy.
NBA to Investigate Philadelphia 76ers for Joel Embiid’s Return From Injury
Embiid (24 points, six rebounds, seven assists) wasn’t even supposed to play on Tuesday. He was already ruled out for the game, which is why it came as no surprise that he was nowhere to be found during the morning shootaround.
Apparently, the 30-year-old showed up in the arena just two hours before tip-off. At that point, the Sixers upgraded his status to questionable. It didn’t take long before Embiid was officially cleared to play.
This is an unusual turn of events, to say the least. NBA on TNT’s Jared Greenberg reported before the game that the irregularities surrounding the team’s decision to let Embiid play on Tuesday have raised some red flags. So much so, that the league is now expected to launch a full-blown investigation on the same:
“I’ve spoken to multiple people inside the NBA league office, and we should expect some sort of investigation into how the Sixers handled the injury report going from out, out, out, to questionable, to playing, in this short span of time. The league office will certainly take note of that,” Greenberg said.
“Joel Embiid is officially playing and starting tonight.”
@JaredSGreenberg reports live from Philly with the latest on Joel Embiid’s return to the starting lineup! pic.twitter.com/S59WJCYN0B— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 2, 2024
The NBA’s front office obviously isn’t happy about how this all came to be. The Sixers could be looking at some sort of fine here, which at this point, is probably the least of their concerns.
The important thing is that Embiid is finally back.
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