Joel Embiid made his preseason debut in the Philadelphia 76ers‘ 126-110 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Wells Fargo Center on Friday. Embiid came close to putting up a triple-double in his first game in close to eight months and threw shade at the media postgame when asked about throwing some long outlet passes against the Timberwolves.
“I’m here to help,” Embiid said. “According to a lot of your peers, I’m not even a top 100 basketball player in this league. So, I guess I just gotta fit in and see where I can help the team win basketball games. So, if that’s playing defense and stretching the floor, that’s what I’m gonna do.”
Embiid, who had 14 points (5-10 FG), seven rebounds, eight assists, and three steals against the Timberwolves, has seen his stock plummet over the last year. The 31-year-old only played in 19 games in 2024-25 after featuring in 39 in 2023-24.
You can’t rely on Embiid to stay healthy, but it’s ludicrous to rank him outside the top 100. While the seven-time All-Star didn’t take names, he could be referring to The Ringer here. They left him off their top 100 list for the 2025-26 season.
It is mentioned that injured players are ineligible for consideration, but if Zion Williamson, who played 30 games in 2024-25, can come in at 45, then there is no justification for leaving Embiid off. Even a significantly hampered version of the 2023 MVP is a top 100 player.
Embiid averaged 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game in 2024-25. He was nowhere near his best, but there aren’t too many players in the NBA who can even put up those numbers.
Some other major media houses were kinder to Embiid. Both CBS and Bleacher Report ranked him at 26th, while ESPN had him at 47th. ESPN’s Tim Bontemps stated that if Embiid is healthy, he’s obviously a top-10 caliber player. No one has any idea how many games he will play this season, so it’s fair to put him in that range. Embiid himself has admitted his situation is unpredictable.
“I think going forward we’re just going to listen to the body,” Embiid said. “I’ll be honest and say it’s going to be unpredictable at times, and that’s okay. We’re going to work with that.”
“We’ve got a plan in place, trying to check all of the boxes,” Embiid added. “This is still kind of a feel period where we’re just taking it day by day…there’s been a few court sessions, everything’s on schedule.”
Embiid underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in April, and the 76ers were carefully managing him in training camp. They want to be cautious with their superstar and rightfully so.
Embiid has also done his part to ensure there is a better chance of him avoiding the injury bug. He looks to have slimmed dow,n and that might help him stay upright.
We could see Embiid in action next when the 76ers take on the Boston Celtics at the TD Garden on Wednesday at 7:30 PM ET.
