May 02, (THEWILL) – The Philadelphia 76ers will be without star centre, Joel Embiid, for Game 1 of their second-round series against the Boston Celtics on Monday night.
Reports monitored by THEWILL reveal that his absence is due to a sprained right knee. Embiid had already missed Game 4 of the team’s first-round series against the Brooklyn Nets due to the same injury.
However, there is hope that Embiid could return for Game 2 on Wednesday. Despite his absence, the Sixers managed to sweep the Nets in Game 4. Nonetheless, Embiid’s value to the team cannot be understated, as he was the team’s top performer in the regular season, averaging over 33 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists per game.
As Sixers head coach, Doc Rivers, said, “We need him, but I’m just going to focus on the ones we have.” Without Embiid, the Sixers will need to lean on players like Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris to step up their games.
Meanwhile, the Celtics will look to capitalise on the Sixers’ injury woes and take an early series lead at home in Game 1.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
