Philadelphia 76ers Coach Nick Nurse ‘Not Sure’ if Joel Embiid Will Be Ready for Training Camp

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse told Brian T. Smith of talkSPORT that he’s “not sure” if NBA star Joel Embiid will be ready for training camp.

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

“I know he’s working very, very hard and I think things look good,” Nurse said about Embiid. “Whether he’s ready for training camp or not, I think there’s maybe a lot more decisions than that to make before we get there. But our main thing is that he’s healthy to play and play to his nearest capabilities, because he’s awesome, no doubt about that.”

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 went 24-58 last season. Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey only played in 15 games together, as all three All-Stars dealt with injuries.

“We had a really unfortunate season last year,” Nurse said. “We just could not get away from the injury bug at all. Not only was Joel Embiid, our former MVP from just a couple of years ago — I think he played (19) games. That was one thing. But it was almost four, five, six guys every night. We just never could get any continuity. We used an incredible 40 different players last year.”

Embiid averaged 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 2024-25 while shooting 44.4% from the field, 29.9% from beyond the arc and 88.2% from the free-throw line. He had seven double-doubles and one triple-double.

A Kansas product, 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. Embiid has played in only 58 games the last two seasons.

The Sixers drafted Embiid in 2014 with the third overall pick. Embiid, the 2023 MVP, missed the first two years of his career due to injuries. 

The Sixers haven’t advanced past the second round of the postseason in the Embiid era. Embiid has played with Ben Simmons, Tobias Harris, Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, James Harden, Maxey and George.