Joel Embiid is currently on track to appear in more than 65 games and eclipse the 2,000-minute plateau—touchstones no one around the NBA, not even inside the Philadelphia 76ers organization, expected him to surpass.
So, with this in mind, might it be time to rest him down the stretch? After all, the Sixers are guaranteed to make the playoffs. And though the Toronto Raptors have been spectacular for most of the year, they don’t incite the same fear as most other No. 1 seeds. The Sixers could stand to lose a few games and some ground on the playoff ladder and still have a fighting chance to make it out of the first round.
Is this scenario not worth the benefit of protecting Embiid? Particularly when the Sixers, for all their immediate success, are still more concerned with the big picture?
Embiid doesn’t want to hear any of this. Not with the Sixers taking ownership of fourth place in the Eastern Conference following their beatdown of the Memphis Grizzlies. Not when they could have home-court advantage through the first round, rather than worrying about ceding that advantage to the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Raptors or another team.
Here’s what Embiid had to say on the matter of rest, per NBC Sports’ Jessica Camerato:
Joel Embiid on the possibility of a rest game: "I’m playing in every game."
— Jessica Camerato (@JCameratoNBCS) March 22, 2018
Short. Sweet. To the point.
But is it accurate?
Embiid can say whatever he wants. Ultimately, the decision of whether to play him rests with the Sixers. And while the prospect of snagging a top-four playoff seed no doubt calls to them, Embiid has played in 15 straight games. They also have three back-to-back sets left, including their Thursday night tilt with the Orlando Magic, which falls on the tail end of this B2B. They may not try to get Embiid an extended break from the action, but it feels like he’ll more likely than not miss at least a couple games as part of his season-long maintenance program.
Granted, this presumes the Sixers are willing to go against Embiid’s public desires. And that’s easier said than done. I mean, hell, you try saying no to someone so invested in this team, who’s playing at the level he is. It’s hard.
So keep an eye on the Sixers and Embiid—if not to see where they end up in the East’s playoff bracket, then at least to see whether the team is willing to let him play out the rest of the schedule at his own request.
