Joel Embiid will play against the Chicago Bulls after a 13-game absence
Embiid’s return from an oblique strain arrives the same night that Paul George is back from a 25-game suspension for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy.
Joel Embiid will return from an oblique strain for the 76ers’ Wednesday matchup against the Chicago Bulls, the team announced.
Embiid had missed 13 games with the injury in his side, which occurred during the Sixers’ Feb. 26 home win against the Miami Heat. He returned to individual on-court workouts more than a week ago, and was wearing a blue jersey during Wednesday’s shootaround, which is typically designated for the team’s starters. He entered the day listed as questionable on the NBA’s official injury report.
Starting guard Quentin Grimes, who missed Monday’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder with an illness, also is available to play.
» READ MORE: An inside look at Paul George’s suspension and his contributions to the Sixers from the sidelines
Embiid’s return from injury arrives the same night that Paul George is back from a 25-game suspension for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy. All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey (little finger tendon sprain) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (elbow sprain) remain out. Oubre has been reevaluated and is cleared to resume on-court activities, the Sixers said Wednesday.
Before Embiid’s oblique injury, the former NBA Most Valuable Player was dealing with a stress reaction in his right shin as well as a right knee issue.
Those ailments kept him out of five consecutive games overlapping the mid-February All-Star break and upended a dominant — and available — stretch for Embiid. In 20 games between Dec. 23 and Feb. 7, he averaged 30 points on 52.7% shooting, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists and was in contention to be named an All-Star reserve.
This is the latest injury-affected season for Embiid, who was limited to 19 games in 2024-25 and missed more than two months in 2023-24 due to multiple surgeries on his left knee.
The Sixers (39-33) are fighting for postseason positioning in a crowded Eastern Conference with 10 games remaining. They enter Wednesday in seventh place, one game behind the sixth-place Atlanta Hawks and one game ahead of the eighth-place Orlando Magic, ninth-place Charlotte Hornets, and 10th-place Miami Heat.