Joel Embiid has dealt with a myriad of injuries in the postseason throughout his career. He has played through a fractured orbital, multiple knee injuries and a torn ligament in his thumb. His path this postseason is no different. While having problems with his surgically repaired left knee, he is also playing through a case of Bell’s palsy. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was first to report Embiid’s Bell’s palsy diagnosis.
ESPN Sources: Sixers star Joel Embiid has been treated for a mild case of Bell’s palsy for the past week. The condition began during the play-in victory over Miami but he has wanted to keep it private to avoid distractions for his team.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 26, 2024
Bell’s palsy is defined by Johns Hopkins Medicine as “an unexplained of facial muscle weakness or paralysis.” Embiid has had issues blinking his left eye and more recently the left side of his mouth was drooping. He has been consistently wearing sunglasses in between games throughout this series against the New York Knicks. After the win in Game 3, Embiid opened up about when his symptoms first began.
“I don’t know exactly what happened, but I guess that’s a normal thing,” he said, via Noah Levick of NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I think it started a day or two before the [play-in tournament] Miami game. I had bad migraines. I thought it was nothing. Usually, I don’t like to check it out. But for some reason I ended up having to tell somebody. That’s why that Miami game, my body, I was just not feeling it. It’s pretty annoying with my left side of my face, my mouth and my eye.”
Embiid also mentioned his left eye gets consistently dry, at times affecting his vision. He has been treating the dryness with eye drops.
Despite playing through multiple ailments, Embiid has continued to be a dominant player throughout the Philadelphia 76ers’ first-round series against the Knicks. With Game 3 essentially being a must win for the Sixers, Embiid produced a vintage performance for the ages while leading Philadelphia to a 125-114 win. He scored 50 points, joining Wilt Chamberlain and Nikola Jokic as the only centers in NBA history to achieve that feat in the postseason.
Embiid’s historic night was very nearly derailed just a few minutes into the first quarter. After being knocked to the floor, he grabbed at Mitchell Robinson’s legs as the Knicks big man was attempting to go up for a layup. The play caused a ton of commotion on the floor, incensing the Knicks. Embiid was given a Flagrant 1 foul and fortunately avoided being ejected from the game. Zach Zarba after the game told Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer the crew and replay center official were “unanimous that this did not rise to the level of excessive contact, unnecessary and excessive.”
The first half was a struggle for Embiid as he attempted to manage the emotions of playing in a must win game, being in foul trouble and navigating a tough Knicks defense. However, he got himself under control and proceeded to destroy New York’s defense in the second half.
The duo of Embiid and Tyrese Maxey were able to consistently inflict punishment on the Knicks defense. Maxey got it going early in the half, scoring 10 points in the first five minutes of the third quarter. Embiid then took over the game as Philadelphia began to pull away. The Sixers used a combination of screens and moving Embiid around the court to force mismatches for the Knicks defensively. Maxey at one point got Isaiah Hartenstein on an island, nailing a step-back 3-pointer from the top of the key. Embiid had success in the multiple possessions where he was defended by Jalen Brunson or other smaller defenders.
Embiid got into a rhythm to the point where he was scoring regardless of who was in front of him. At least for one night, the big fella was raining 3-pointers like Steph Curry. He made a 3-pointer on three consecutive possessions in the middle of the third quarter.
JOEL?!?!?!?!?! pic.twitter.com/vS2gH4SdHB
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) April 26, 2024
The Sixers had a 204.8 offensive rating in the third quarter of Game 3. A lot of that was due to their successful outside shooting. They shot a ridiculous 9-of-12 from beyond the arc in the third quarter, including a perfect 4 of 4 from Embiid. Behind a 43-point third quarter, the Sixers took over Game 3 and gave themselves a chance to even the series in Game 4.
Embiid is clearly less than 100 percent, both because of a sore left knee and Bell’s palsy. However, he is gutting it out and leaving everything on the court. Through three games in this series, Embiid is averaging 37.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists. His impact on the series can also be measured through the plus-minus stat. According to Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports, the Sixers have outscored New York by 33 points in the 115 minutes Embiid has been on the floor. They are getting demolished in the 29 minutes Embiid has been off the floor, getting outscored by 32 points. Even when Embiid is labored with multiple injuries, he is making a profound impact on the series.
It has not been easy for Embiid this postseason. However, he is showing signs of growth as a leader while attempting to handle his difficult situation with more maturity.
“Every single year, you start asking yourself questions like, ‘Why?'” Embiid said, via Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “Every single year, it’s very annoying. Maybe it’s just meant to be. Just got to take it as it is, but the one thing I’m not going to do is give up. No matter what happens, got to keep pushing, got to keep fighting. Got to keep putting my body on the line for my family, for this city, for this team.
“It goes through your mind and you can ask yourself those questions, but what are you going to do about it? Are you going to quit or are you going to keep going? And if you keep going, what are you going to do about it? The best thing you can do is do the best job possible to prepare yourself every single day, which I’ve done. Sometimes you get the results, sometimes you don’t, but if there’s one thing I’ll say about myself, it’s that I’m not going to quit.”
Extras: Cam Payne’s Crucial Spark Off the Bench
The Sixers desperately needed a spark from someone outside of Embiid and Maxey. Cam Payne provided it in a big way in Game 3, totaling 11 points, three assists and two blocks in 16 minutes off the bench. He made an immediate impact upon stepping onto the floor, dishing out an assist to Nic Batum and drilling a pair of 3-pointers. The 29-year old was gesturing to the crowd after each of his made threes. While the numbers were good, his vibes and energy were perhaps his most valuable impact.
Payne spent most of the first two games of the series on the bench, playing a combined three minutes on the floor. Despite barely seeing the floor, he remained ready for whenever he would be called upon. He spoke after the game, via Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports, about the importance of being prepared and always playing with a ton of energy.
I hop around all game on the bench. I’m locked in on the game plan, I pay attention to what’s going out there on the court. That’s half the fight, is really paying attention…It just comes from experience. I’ve been in big games, at times I’ve been called out of nowhere to be ready.
Energy costs nothing. I was pumping the crowd up tonight, I don’t know, we as humans feed off of energy, we feed off of confidence, we feed on things, but you know if you’re always negative on somebody, you may not get their full potential. Sometimes a lot of bench guys, that’s our job to keep giving guys confidence. Keep showing love to the guys that’s out there playing. You never know when you might be out there, you want that energy back, it brings confidence to the team…I like having fun, it’s still a child’s game. I love having fun out there. I feel like once the crowd gets going and once we get into it, man, it’s an even better team out there.
Payne has proven to be a perfect role player for the Sixers since they acquired him at the trade deadline. His energy is infectious while also providing outside shooting and capable ball handling. With Buddy Hield struggling against the Knicks, Payne should be able to see a more consistent role throughout the remainder of this series.
