How serious is the injury that kept Joel Embiid sidelined for a big stretch of the 2024 regular season?

Joel Embiid, the star player for the Philadelphia 76ers, recently underwent successful surgery on his left knee to address a displaced flap of the meniscus. This type of tear can be quite severe and can cause an extended time away from the game. Embiid was sidelined for almost three months (eight weeks) before returning to play, which corresponds to the recommended rehabilitation time for a meniscus repair.

The injury occurred during a game against the Golden State Warriors when Embiid was double-teamed. One of the Warriors players accidentally fell on Embiid’s leg, causing him to grab at his knee and leave the game. He did not return until the end of the regular season; even now, he is not at 100%.

At the time of his injury, Embiid was the leading scorer in the league, averaging over 35 points per game. He had also scored 30 points or more in 22 consecutive games. The 76ers struggled while Embiid was away, losing 18 of 29 games.

Now, the focus is on Embiid’s recovery and how his left knee responds after every game.

“We just got to take it day by day, see how the knee responds tomorrow... I think it’s actually funny; the timeline was eight weeks, and I’m back on that eight weeks. So I think I’ve learned a lot over the years, and I got to take care of myself, got to stay healthy because I still have a long career ahead of this,” Embiid said after his return game, and we hope that he truly learned his lesson, and will stay injury-free during this playoffs.