NBA Rumors: In what could end up being an unexpected turn of events, Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers could be on a path toward a bad divorce.
Even though the Philadelphia 76ers have endured what will largely be remembered as a "lost" season, even after the big offseason move for Paul George, not all is lost for the franchise. In fact, of the teams that will not qualify for the NBA Playoffs this year, the argument could be made that the Sixers are in the best position to bounce back in a big way next year. A big part of whether that will happen certainly revolves around Joel Embiid's health.
After undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery, the hope is that Embiid will be in a great position to start the season 100 percent healthy. Even if that does happen, it'd be almost impossible to ignore the internal issues that were reportedly present between the Sixers and Embiid all throughout this season. According to ESPN's Shams Charania, there was some real tension between the Sixers and Embiid this year as they decided how to move forward revolging around the health of their supersetar center. Adding to that report, Shams noted that it's something to "keep in mind" heading into the offseason.
What that exactly means remains to be seen, but it's clear that there may be more to this story than what's been reported on the surface. At this point, you can't help but wonder if this could all be the beginning of the end for Embiid's relationship with the Sixers.
The Philadelphia 76ers are heading into a future-defining offseason
Even though Embiid has had a great career thus far, despite the injury issues he's had to battle through, the Sixers have largely underachieved with the superstar big man. He's had several MVP-worthy seasons under his belt over the past few years, and the Sixers have still been unable to make it out of the second round of the NBA Playoffs.
At this point, if Embiid does want to compete for a championship before the end of his career, it may have to come with a different franchise. That's a big reason why I believe this offseason could prove to be a future-defining one for the franchise. After what transpired this season, the Sixers have to get things perfectly heading into next year.
And if the Sixers still underperform next season, all bets are off when it comes to this team's future. Embiid will be at the center of it all, and he could make or break this franchise's future with one decision. I can't imagine that will happen this offseason but at this point, you never know. As Shams echoes, this situation is certainly one that commands some attention.