Late in the regular season, news broke out that Joel Embiid was dealing with appendicitis and needed surgery to remove his appendix. Due to this, he was ruled out of the play-in tournament. More than a week later, Skip Bayless stirred controversy by suggesting the Philadelphia 76ers star could have played but chose not to. However, Embiid’s trainer, Drew Hanlen, quickly pushed back on that claim.
Speaking on the latest episode of Gilbert Arenas’ podcast, Bayless made a bold accusation. He said he had a source in Philadelphia who told him Embiid had already been cleared to play but decided to sit out anyway.
“I got a pretty good source in Philadelphia, who told me that Embiid is actually cleared to play, but has chosen not to play,” Bayless said. “That’s what I was told. That it’s appendicitis, but it’s fine and went well. These days, they can just go quickly… He could play if he chose to. So, now that’s like turmoil, locker room kind of turmoil.”
The claim quickly gained attention, but Hanlen was not having it. He dismissed the report outright and questioned the credibility of Bayless’ source.
“To set the record straight, this is 100% false. Nothing worse than when media members make up shit for clicks & views then hide behind unnamed “sources.”,” Hanlen wrote on X.
Several NBA players have gone through appendectomies during the season, and it usually takes a couple of weeks before they are fully ready to return. The average recovery timeline is between 2 and 5 weeks, depending on the situation. In Joel Embiid’s case, it has only been about a week since the procedure, which makes the idea of him being ready to play again seem pretty unrealistic.
Tyrese Maxey felt Joel Embiid’s presence on the 76ers bench
Joel Embiid wasn’t in uniform for Wednesday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic, but his presence still mattered. For the first time since his surgery, he made it to the bench and supported his teammates from the sidelines.
That alone gave the group a noticeable boost. After the 109-97 win, Tyrese Maxey spoke about how much it meant to see Embiid back around the team.
“Huge man, huge,” Maxey said. “Kyle called me two days ago, so Monday, he called me. He said, ‘Man, what do you think about Joel coming to the game?’ Like it would just be a huge lift. I’m like, ‘Yeah, I mean, if he can, he’s up to it.’ And we didn’t even ask him, I said, ‘Just if he can, he will.’ And he was there, you know what I mean? I talked to him via phone, and I was surprised to see him there. I gave him a big hug. I was glad to see him, and his spirits are high, so we’re happy for him.”
Maxey led the charge with 31 points, while Andre Drummond stepped up in Embiid’s absence, putting up 14 points and 10 rebounds. Their performances helped the Sixers lock in the #7 seed in the playoffs.
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