76ers’ Embiid out indefinitely with orbital fracture

The Philadelphia 76ers announced Friday evening that superstar center Joel Embiid will be out indefinitely after suffering what the team called a right orbital fracture and mild concussion in Philadelphia’s dominant Game 6 win over the Toronto Raptors.

Embiid, who had 33 points and 10 rebounds in 36 minutes in the win, suffered the injury while defending a Pascal Siakam drive with 3:58 to go in the fourth quarter. Embiid immediately went to the bench while the play was reviewed, with Siakam eventually being given an offensive foul.

With the Sixers up 119-90, Embiid’s backup, Paul Reed, checked in for the final 3:58. Embiid didn’t speak to the media after the game.

Embiid was already playing through a torn ligament in his right (shooting) thumb, which he suffered in the first half of Philadelphia’s Game 3 win in Toronto.

Embiid was evaluated by specialists Friday to determine the severity of the orbital fracture. The results are still pending, but sources told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne that a determination on surgery has not yet been made. Embiid will be evaluated again next week, but at a minimum he must sit out five days with the concussion symptoms.

There is no timetable for his return to the lineup but sources said “the door isn’t closed” yet. It depends on the severity of the orbital fracture and how the team’s medical staff decides to treat it.

In 2018, Embiid — who averaged 26.2 points and 11.3 rebounds against Toronto — suffered a left facial fracture and concussion when he collided with teammate Markelle Fultz. That injury required surgery and caused him to miss a total of three weeks — the final two weeks of the regular season and the first two games of the playoffs — before returning for Game 3 of Philadelphia’s first-round series that year against the Miami Heat, who also are Philadelphia’s Eastern Conference semifinal opponent.

Philadelphia’s Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Heat begins Monday night in Miami, and will continue every other day until it is complete.

Source: www.espn.com