Report: Joel Embiid knee injury more serious than thought

Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid‘s right knee injury was initially classified as a Grade 1 LCL sprain, but it is "considered to be more serious" than initially thought, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. The MVP candidate is considered doubtful for Game 1 of Philadelphia's second-round series against Boston on Monday and there are questions about how many games he may have to miss.

Embiid has been able to do some individual shooting drills this week and his condition will be evaluated on a day-to-day basis, Charania adds (Twitter link). Looking past the start of the series, Game 2 is set for Wednesday in Boston before the showdown shifts to Philadelphia on Friday and next Sunday.

Embiid has not practiced since suffering the injury and head coach Doc Rivers told reporters on Saturday that he had no update about his star's condition, writes Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice.

“There is no latest,” Rivers said. “Doctors looked at him and he didn’t do anything today. I’ll say this, if I was a betting man I would say doubtful for at least Game 1, but we’ll see.”

There’s more on the Sixers:

• Paul Reed turned in a strong performance in the close-out game against the Brooklyn Nets and he is ready to replace Embiid in the starting lineup for as long as necessary, Neubeck notes. Reed talked Saturday about earning the trust of his teammates over the course of the season and said the mental part of his game has improved since last year’s playoffs. “Knowing where they need me on the court, where I’m going to get my points, and knowing where I’m going to help my teammates get their points,” Reed said. “… My teammates know what to expect out of me now, and I know what they expect out of myself. It’s a lot more clear.”
• The Sixers will need more production from their supporting cast against the Celtics, particularly if Embiid’s absence turns out to be lengthy, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Pompey believes that the coaching staff needs to find a way to get consistent scoring from Tobias Harris and that it should try to run some of the offense through Tyrese Maxey.
• Rivers discusses his future in Philadelphia, the Sixers’ title aspirations, his love for coaching, his recent playoff failures and several other topics in an interview with David Aldridge of The Athletic.