The Philadelphia 76ers‘ 2025-26 season ended at the same stage as so many others have over the last decade, the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The New York Knicks took down the 76ers 144-114 in Game 4 at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Sunday to sweep them out of the playoffs.
This latest defeat means 76ers superstar Joel Embiid continues to hold the unwanted distinction of being the only MVP in NBA history to have never reached the Conference Finals. This was Embiid’s 10th season in the NBA, and here’s a look at how the 76ers have fared in each of them.
Joel Embiid’s Playoff History
2017: Missed playoffs
2018: Lost 4-1 to the Boston Celtics in the Conference Semifinals
2019: Lost 4-3 to the Toronto Raptors in the Conference Semifinals
2020: Lost 4-0 to the Boston Celtics in the first round
2021: Lost 4-3 to the Atlanta Hawks in the Conference Semifinals
2022: Lost 4-2 to the Miami Heat in the Conference Semifinals
2023: Lost 4-3 to the Boston Celtics in the Conference Semifinals
2024: Lost 4-2 to the New York Knicks in the first round
2025: Missed playoffs
2026: Lost 4-0 to the New York Knicks in the Conference Semifinals
Embiid has gotten close on a couple of occasions. The ones where the 76ers lost in seven games stand out.
It took that iconic Kawhi Leonard game-winning buzzer-beater that bounced on the rim four times for the Toronto Raptors to knock out the 76ers in 2019. Had Leonard missed, Game 7 goes to overtime, and who knows which team emerges victorious.
While there was bad luck there, the 76ers only had themselves to blame in 2021 against the Atlanta Hawks. They blew an 18-point lead in Game 4, and as if that wasn’t bad enough, they squandered a 26-point advantage in Game 5. That series never should have gone the distance, but the 76ers shot themselves in the foot and allowed the Hawks to pull off a stunning upset.
We get to 2023 next, and the 76ers led 3-2 against the Boston Celtics. All they needed to do was win Game 6 at home to advance, and they took a 73-71 lead into the fourth quarter. Just one good quarter of basketball would see them in the Conference Finals, but they only muster 13 points in the fourth and lost.
Jayson Tatum then finished off the 76ers with 51 points in Game 7. It was the third time the Celtics had knocked them out of the playoffs in the Embiid era. They were very much the bogey team.
These teams met again in the first round in 2026, and it looked like business as usual. The Celtics went up 3-1 and looked on course for yet another series victory. With Embiid leading the charge, however, the 76ers stormed back from a 3-1 deficit for the first time in franchise history to finally take them down in a series for the first time since 1982.
Optimism was sky high, but Embiid was hobbling at the end of Game 7 against the Celtics. You wondered if the 32-year-old would be at his best physically against the Knicks in the Conference Semifinals, and he wasn’t.
Embiid struggled in Games 1 and 3 and missed Game 2 with right hip and ankle injuries. The seven-time All-Star was a perfect 8-8 from the field in Game 4, but the game was basically over in the first quarter itself.
Would the outcome of this series have been different had Embiid been fully healthy? Well, that’s a question that has been asked almost every time after the 76ers were eliminated from the playoffs.
Embiid had an orbital fracture in 2018, knee tendinitis and illness in 2019, a meniscus tear in 2021, a torn thumb ligament, concussion, and orbital fracture in 2022, a knee sprain in 2023, and Bell’s palsy in 2024. He missed the first three games against the Celtics this year, too, as he was still recovering after undergoing an appendectomy.
Some of these injuries have contributed to Embiid performing well below expectations post the first round. For his career, he averages 23.1 points per game in the Conference Semifinals while shooting 43.5% from the field and 28.7% from beyond the arc. There is a notable dip compared to the regular season, where he puts up 27.6 points per game while shooting 50.0% from the field and 33.9% from beyond the arc.
Of all the injuries mentioned, a few are just bad luck, but the fact is that Embiid’s body just keeps breaking down. He isn’t going to get healthier as he ages, and it looks likely at this point that he will finish his career without ever making the Conference Finals.
After this loss to the Knicks, Embiid claimed he wasn’t sure he’d be with the 76ers next season. He almost certainly will be with them next season.
Embiid’s three-year, $188 million extension kicks in from next season. With this injury history, there isn’t a team in the NBA that’s going to trade for him. The 76ers aren’t going to waive and stretch Embiid’s contract either, so expect him to be in Philadelphia for quite some time longer.
