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The question of when Joel Embiid will return to the Philadelphia 76ers lineup was finally answered Tuesday. A few hours later, he was leading the Sixers to a win in his first game in more than two months.
Facing the shorthanded Oklahoma City Thunder, Embiid 24 points on 6-of-14 shooting, six rebounds, seven assists, three steaks and six turnovers in 29 minutes. He re-introduced himself with a jump shot while surrounded by three defenders:
The former MVP came up biggest at the end of the game, making four straight free throws to push the Sixers ahead and notching a steal off Josh Giddey in a pivotal possession for the Thunder with 28 seconds remaining:
Embiid was clearly happy to be back.
"Usually, when I get hurt, I move on to the next one. This one took a toll mentally," Embiid said after the game "I just wanted to come back .. This one was probably the hardest by far, mentally."
A win over the Western Conference-leading Thunder is clearly big for the Sixers, though the Thunder were without their top 2 leading scorers in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams. Chet Holmgren led the team in scoring with 22 points in their absence.
Embiid's status was changed to questionable shortly before Tuesday's game, leading to speculation that the reigning NBA MVP could indeed return to the court. Additional reporting from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski confirmed the big man was back.
Sixers coach Nick Nurse did not confirm that Embiid would play, only that he was working on the court during pregame. But he did acknowledge that the center would likely be on a minutes restriction when he returns from the injury.
Embiid, 30, has been out with injury since Jan. 30. Struggling with pain in his left knee, he was diagnosed with a meniscus injury that required surgery. At the time of his injury, Embiid was leading the NBA in scoring with an average of 35.3 points per game. In 34 games, he also averaged 11.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists.
According to reports, Embiid did not participate in Philadelphia’s shoot-around earlier in the day and was initially believed to be out for Tuesday’s game.
Embiid’s return comes at a crucial time for the 76ers, who have clinched a postseason spot but currently hold the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 41–35 record.
Overtaking the Miami Heat or Indiana Pacers in the standings might mean avoiding the Play-In Tournament (involving the Nos. 7-10 seeds), in addition to a possible first-round playoff matchup with the NBA-best Boston Celtics.
Daniel Weinman was crowned winner of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event on Monday, taking home a record breaking $12.1 million in winnings. Weinman had to outlast the other 10,043 entrants to take home the prize and get his hands on his share of live poker’s largest ever prize pool – a staggering $93,399,900. As well as taking home the prize money, 35-year-old Weinman also got his hands on the WSOP Main Event bracelet. The huge bracelet contains 500 grams of 10-karat yellow gold, as well as 2,352 various precious gemstones.
Daniel Weinman won the World Series of Poker's main event world championship on Monday in Las Vegas, earning $12.1 million along the way. Playing in the tournament for a 16th year, Weinman was tops in a deep pool of 10,043 players vying for $93.39 million. His victory came after just 164 hands at the final table. "I was honestly on the fence about even coming back and playing this tournament," the 35-year-old Atlanta native told reporters afterward. Weinman's final table featured Jan-Peter Jachtmann, who landed in fourth place and took home $3 million, as well as Toby Lewis, who finished seventh and secured $1.42 million. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the main event's entry pool far outpaced the previous record of 8,773 set in 2006. "I've always kind of felt that poker was kind of going in a dying direction, but to see the numbers at the World Series this year has been incredible," Weinman said. "And to win this main event, it doesn't feel real. I mean, [there's] so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well." Steven Jones finished second, securing $6.5 million. And Adam Walton settled for third and a $4 million prize.
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