Facing Elimination, Joel Embiid’s Availability for Knicks-76ers Game 5 Has Philly Nervous Due to His Left Knee Injury

The Philadelphia 76ers find themselves in a precarious position as they prepare for Game 5 of their first-round series against the New York Knicks. The Knicks lead the series 3-1 as the matchup moves to Madison Square Garden in NYC. With Philly almost on the brink of elimination, another concerning update will worry 76ers fans regarding the league’s reigning MVP, Joel Embiid.

Embiid underwent a meniscus surgery in February before returning to the floor for Philadelphia earlier this month. However, he hasn’t been at his best despite appearing in all the games in this series. The latest injury report submitted by the Sixers shows that Joel Embiid’s status is ‘Questionable’ for tonight’s game at MSG because of his ‘left knee injury recovery’. Embiid also missed the morning shoot-around before the game due to a migraine.

Joel Embiid missed shootaround this morning with a migraine. His status for tonight’s game remains questionable.

— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) April 30, 2024

Besides his ankle and knee injuries, recent reports have also confirmed Joel Embiid to be playing with Bell’s Palsy, a facial condition that causes weakness on one side of the face. During Game 2 of the series, Embiid’s left eye appeared to be twitching, which raised significant concerns amongst Philly fans. However, Embiid has shown brilliant resilience all throughout, giving it all for his team. He will most likely suit up for Game 5 as well.

But Philly will still face an uphill battle in New York to stay alive in the series. New York fans’ voices reverberated through Wells Fargo Center in Game 4. So we can guess what kind of atmosphere awaits Philadelphia in the Garden. Not only will the 76ers need Embiid to play in Game 5, but they will also need him to do something extraordinary to delay an early exit this postseason.

This could potentially be the last game for the Sixers for this season, which means we could see them give their all for this one. Philly could also use the loss of Bojan Bogdanovic to their advantage. Mitchell Robinson has been deemed ‘questionable’ for Game 5 after missing out on Game 4. His addition will be crucial for the Knicks because they will need some size and physicality to contain Embiid in the post.