The world has waited this long for Joel Embiid, the third overall pick in 2014, to make his NBA debut. What’s another few months?
The 22-year-old seven-footer is expected to officially hit the hardwood in 2016-17 and, apparently, not a moment sooner. He will not be repping the Philadelphia 76ers during either of the NBA’s Summer Leagues, per Tom Moore of Bucks County Courier Times:
Joel Embiid’s continued oncourt progress has led to speculation that the 76ers’ center might play summer league basketball in July.
On April 27, Sixers president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo said he wouldn’t rule it out, though the organization wasn’t going to rush the 7-foot-2, 275-pound Embiid back before he’s ready. He has repeated a similar stance in recent weeks.
But an NBA source Thursday called it “unlikely” that Embiid would participate in the Utah Jazz Summer League from July 4-7 or the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas from July 8-18.
The source said Embiid playing less than 11 months after bone graft surgery on his right foot wasn’t “practical.” The last thing the Sixers want is Embiid experiencing a setback that could jeopardize or delay his regular-season debut.
Multiple foot surgeries have kept Embiid chained to the sidelines for his first two NBA seasons, so it makes sense that the Sixers are taking the overly cautious route. Don’t be surprised if he isn’t playing by training camp, or even the preseason, or even the actual regular season. They are going to take things slow, and they have the luxury to do so. They have a ton of bigs on the roster already, and no one expects them to win anything anytime soon.
Still, they will have to unleash Embiid at some point. As the big man noted after the Sixers won the draft lottery on Tuesday night:
The #3 Pick from the 2014 draft is gonna be ready too… Let's get it
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) May 18, 2016
If and when Embiid does return, don’t bank on the Sixers trotting him out for 30 minutes, or 25 minutes, or 20 minutes, per game. Shit, assuming health, if Embiid averages more than 15 minutes a night, it will be an accomplishment.
The important thing, though, is that he’s still on course to play. We don’t exactly know when, but his debut is coming. For real this time.
