76ers’ Tyrese Maxey ‘Praying’ For Joel Embiid, Hopes Big Man ‘Gets Back Healthy’

During an interview with NBA reporter Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints, Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey said he’s “praying” for center Joel Embiid. 

The 2023 MVP, Embiid underwent arthroscopic left knee surgery in April. He only played in 19 games last season. 

“Joel is like, I always say he’s a big brother to me,” Tyrese Maxey said about Joel Embiid. “He’s somebody who has always believed in me. We talk once or twice a week. It’s been great though. I’ve been communicating with him. I’m just praying for him. Hopefully he gets back healthy and he’s somebody who really wants to be out there for his teammates and for himself, and the organization. So we appreciate Joel.”

Embiid has played in just 58 games the last two seasons. The Sixers missed the playoffs last season despite having Embiid, Maxey and Paul George. The three All-Stars appeared in 15 games together due to injuries. 

“I mean, the biggest thing is we’ve got to get on the court together, we’ve got to be healthy and we got to have continuity,” Maxey said. “You can’t do anything if the guys aren’t together. If we aren’t together, if we aren’t all on the court, if we’re not all stepping in the right direction and it’s going to be extremely hard.

“So that’s my main goal. That’s something that I had to focus on and have to really help build, is the chemistry of the team and help this team step in the right direction. And then after that, then we could worry about how talented we are.”

Embiid has career averages of 27.7 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists with the Sixers. He’s made seven All-Star teams, five All-NBA teams and three All-Defensive teams.

The Sixers signed Embiid to a three-year, $192 million extension in September 2024. Embiid, 31, is owed $248 million over the next four seasons.

Philadelphia hasn’t advanced past the second round of the playoffs in the Embiid era. It will be intriguing to see how the team does next season. 

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