76ers' Joel Embiid Addresses Absence Against Wizards on Wednesday

On Friday, he played 34 and a half minutes against the Minnesota Timberwolves to help the 76ers with a 115-103 win. Embiid had a productive game with 19 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and three blocks.

After the game, he was asked about his one-game absence, and he pointed to the team's president of basketball operations, Daryl Morey.

“I was pissed off, I wanted to play basketball,” Embiid said. “I wasn’t allowed to play basketball. So, I think this is more of a question [for] Daryl Morey and whoever makes the decisions.”

According to him, he already felt sick before the team played against the Miami Heat on Monday. Embiid said that he knew it was an important game and still played 34 minutes. He finished with 26 points and seven rebounds, as the 76ers suffered a 119-109 loss.

Heading to Washington, the seven-time All-Star said that he felt "definitely much better" than when they faced the Heat.

“I woke up, didn't sleep until probably, like, 5 in the morning or 6,” Embiid added. “So, with that, I couldn't make it to shootaround. Then after that, I found out online that I wasn't playing that night. So that kind of caught me off guard, and yeah, that pissed me off, but then again, I guess they make the decisions.”

The 76ers are scheduled to face the Detroit Pistons on Saturday, and Embiid is hoping to play in his first back-to-back of the season. He told the media that "there's a chance" he could be on the floor tomorrow night. However, he pointed out that the team will have the final say on his status against the Pistons.

Embiid revealed that his right oblique is still bothering him and that it got hit against Minnesota. However, he tries his best not to think about his injury too much.