Joel Embiid, 76ers to embrace ‘new normal’ for load managing him in 2024-25

Joel Embiid, 76ers to embrace ‘new normal’ for load management in 2024-25

A year removed from winning his first-ever MVP, Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid suffered a season-altering torn meniscus that kept him sidelined for 31 of the team’s final 36 games last season.

Embiid was productive in the first-round against the New York Knicks, posting 33.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.5 blocks on a staggering 35.7 percent usage. Though Embiid still didn’t look completely spry–or healthy.

Heading into the 2024-25 season, the 76ers are embracing a “new normal” for Embiid–who has a track record of not being healthy once mid-April arrives–prioritizing his long-term load management instead of the 65-game minimum for him this season.

“I’m told it’s gonna include periodic time off for him during the course of the season,” ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania said Monday. “It’s gonna include regular scheduled checkups for Joel Embiid throughout the course of the season. I’m told he’s not worried or not concerned for any accolades this season. He’s not concerned about the 65-game limit for the All-NBA team or MVP.

“He only wants to be healthy for when he has not been–and that’s the playoffs, and to get him there in full form and full shape. … They want to make sure he’s all systems go when the playoffs start.”

The 76ers made a concerted effort to improve this offseason, bringing in veteran wing Paul George plus Caleb Martin, Reggie Jackson, Andre Drummond and sharpshooter Eric Gordon, among others.

Drummond and second-round pick Adem Bona are the clear frontrunners to back Embiid in games when he’s not available. Should Tyrese Maxey and George be engaged, Drummond and Bona aren’t terrible replacement options, even though they’re clearly a big drop-off.

The 76ers, however, have been anything but successful without their 7-foot star. They went 16-27 without him last year and have gone 33-40 over the last three regular seasons. It’s a different roster in a different context, but I’ll need to see it to believe it in terms of being effective without him over an 82-game season.

Embiid recently told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps that he would “probably” never play back-to-backs again. Before his meniscus injury in February, he played both games in five back-to-backs while playing at least one in two others. They will have 15 back-to-backs this season, so if he missed at least one game in all of those, he’d be available for a maximum of 67 games.

Regardless, Philadelphia hasn’t advanced past the second round since 2000-01, so it’s going to need its best players available come mid-April regardless of how the sausage is made. This load-managing approach didn’t exactly work for Los Angeles with George and Kawhi Leonard, so who knows whether or not it will for Philadelphia.

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