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Joel Embiid might be one of the most dominant big men in today’s NBA but he has often been plagued by injuries and has failed to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a title. In fact, the one-time MVP has never made it past the Eastern Conference semifinals and it is one of the biggest criticisms against him.
As per Dwight Howard, Embiid can stay injury free and extend his career by losing some weight, about 20 pounds of it. Howard said during an appearance on “The OGs” podcast:
“He's 7-2, 7-3. And he got the handles. He can shoot threes. He's 390. He's big. … I think he's too heavy for the wear and tear of NBA season. I think if he loses about 20 pounds, it would be great for his knees. He'll be able to play a couple more years longer. He'll be faster. He'll probably be able to jump higher.”
The former three-time Defensive Player of the Year referenced his own career and how losing weight made him more agile:
“I did go through a season where I lost weight. I lost 30 pounds in 30 days. Then next year I came back with the Lakers. And I was a lot leaner, but I was a lot faster. Jumping like I was 19 again. So I really believe that if he loses that weight, he'll be more mobile. I think he'll be smart.”
Injuries have been a constant concern for Joel Embiid throughout his NBA career. He missed his first two seasons in the league after a stress fracture in his back in March 2014. In June, he had surgery on a broken navicular bone in his right foot.
More recently, the Sixers center played just 39 games in the 2023-24 season because of a knee injury. After being crowned the MVP the previous season, he failed to tally 65 games to be considered for regular-season awards.
Steve Kerr explains decision to bench Joel Embiid against South Sudan
Team USA registered a 103-86 win against South Sudan on Wednesday in its second game of the 2024 Paris Olympics. While the team got the win, Joel Embiid was limited to the bench for the entire game. Coach Steve Kerr explained the decision after the game, via Ben Golliver:
“This is the fastest team in the tournament we're going to play. We wanted to match up. They made 14 threes against us in London. The whole game today was going to be about switching and staying in front of people.”
Joel Embiid started the game against Serbia and had just four points. It remains to be seen if Kerr plays Embiid against Puerto Rico in the final group stage game on Saturday.
