It's certainly not going out on a limb to say the Sixers' success depends on the health and fitness level of Joel Embiid.
When he's on the floor, he's one of, if not the best center in the NBA. The issue for the Sixers is when he's not on the floor - which happens more often than they'd like. The series against the Raptors was the most prime example. Embiid was a plus-89 in a series the team lost in seven games. Greg Monroe was a minus-9 in two (2!) minutes in Game 7. Yuck.
By now we all know about Embiid's injury history. His knee tendinitis and illnesses dominated the headlines during the Sixers' postseason run. The tendinitis could be attributed to Embiid playing 54 of the first 58 games of the season. Some have made the connection of Embiid's illnesses to a poor diet. Whatever the case, both mired Embiid's effectiveness.
There is good news: Embiid knows things need to get better. He knows he needs to be in better physical shape. He knows the Sixers will only have a long playoff run if he's the best and healthiest version of himself.
He also knows how he can accomplish that.
Looking at the way Toronto managed Kawhi [Leonard] all season … when you start thinking about back-to-backs and stuff like that, having a good team around you helps," Embiid said during exit interviews. "Most of the time I kind of feel bad because I feel like I let everybody down by not playing or sitting out. If you see that and you know guys are going to take over and get the win - we have the talent to do so. I guess it's an easy decision for me. I think as long as we got it all covered and we have an opportunity to win games without me, I'm open to it. … Just gotta keep working on my body. It's only going to get better.
Philadelphia 76ers
Complete coverage of the Philadelphia 76ers and their rivals in the NBA from NBC Sports Philadelphia.
He has been looking rather svelte in his Instagram posts and shouldn't have to feel bad about sitting out with the talent that's been brought in.
Elton Brand was aggressive in signing veteran Al Horford. Horford will play with Embiid in the starting lineup at the four, but will also be the team's primary backup center. There may not be a better backup five in the entire league. Horford's abilities on both ends of the floor will soften the blow of having Embiid on the bench.
And let's not forget about Kyle O'Quinn. The veteran big is solid defensively and would've served as a better option than any backup big Brett Brown went to against the Raptors. He's a strong insurance policy as the team's third-string center.
It also helps that the schedule makers were kind to the Sixers - and it doesn't seem like it was an accident. The Sixers have no nationally televised games on the second half of back-to-backs, something our NBC Sports National NBA Insider Tom Haberstroh pointed out as a guest on the Sixers Talk podcast last week. Clearly, those networks don't want to get burned if Embiid decides to rest.
Haberstroh actually wrote a piece about the very topic of the DNP-rest epidemic, discussing a company called Fansure. Fansure should appeal to Sixers fans as "an analytical start-up company that helps protect fans by offering reimbursement plans for tickets to games in which star player(s) sit out due to either rest or a last-minute injury." (Then maybe angry fans will be less likely to be in reporter's mentions … probably not.)
It's also fair to wonder if medical personnel decisions will have any effect on all this with Embiid.
It'll be interesting to see how the Philadelphia 76ers handle Embiid's rest regimen," Haberstroh writes. "The team signed big man Al Horford to start next to him and potentially start at center in Embiid's place if he needs a night off. Those decisions will come down to Embiid and new members of the medical staff after the team parted ways with two major voices - vice president of athlete care Dr. Danny Medina and director of performance research and development Dr. David Martin.
It's tough to know the significance of Medina and Martin no longer being with the Sixers. The team has already begun filling in roles in the athlete care department. They've hired Lorena Torres-Ronda, formerly of the Spurs, as performance director. Expect more new names to be announced this week, per a team source.
While breathing new life into the athlete care department could help, it ultimately comes down to Embiid.
Is he ready to listen to the advice of those around him and do what's best for himself and the team? Will he feel comfortable letting his teammates try to win in back-to-back situations without him?
Guess we'll find out starting Nov. 13, the second game of a back-to-back in Orlando.
Click here to download the MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Flyers, Sixers and Phillies games easily on your device.
