Joel Embiid says he’s ready to play, and it’s just what Philadelphia 76ers fans have been hoping for all summer. Hopes are high for a Sixers team loaded with talent that hopes two of its biggest players — Embiid and Ben Simmons — will stay in the lineup and make a big impact this year.
But Embiid may not have as big a role early on as he’d hoped to. On Monday, Sixers coach Brett Brown said his minutes might be “in the “teens.” Everyone is being careful here, but that’s definitely not what Sixers fans wanted to hear.
And it’s clear that Embiid isn’t happy with being unable to have his own autonomy here. Last season he was visibly upset when he was removed from a close game because of his minutes restriction. And since that season one came to an end with another injury, everyone in Philadelphia is being even more cautious about his condition.
That doesn’t mean he has to be happy about it, though. According to Kyle Neubeck at the Philly Voice, Embiid called his minutes restrictions in the teens to be “bullsh*t.”
Embiid just called his minutes restriction “fucking bullshit”
— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) October 17, 2017
Brown did say that the situation would be move fluid than it was last year, which means the restriction may be a precaution to start the season that slowly, or perhaps quickly, goes away. And according to an ESPN report he’s certainly going to lobby for that to be the case.
“I got a voice,” Embiid told Philly.com. “They got to listen to me. … If I feel great and my body feels great and my knee is fine, I should play 30 minutes or more. I definitely have my opinion on that.
“They are going to hear me. We are going to discuss it.”
Embiid is going to fight his way onto the floor, whether though the media or in the locker room. But it’s a delicate balance. Doctors are trying to look out for him here, and no one wants to put him in a situation where he can damage his career. But the impatience to finally start said career may get the better of everyone here. For the sake of The Process, waiting might be the best course of action for everyone here.
