Joel Embiid and Paul George still aren’t ready to play for the Philadelphia 76ers this season, and Nick Nurse doesn’t really want to talk about it.
The NBA, however, fined the team $100,000 for public statements they’ve made about Embiid’s health status on Tuesday afternoon. The punishment was handed down after an investigation into the team regarding Embiid’s status was launched after he missed their season-opener earlier this month. The investigation, the league said, confirmed that Embiid was unable to play in that game.
The 76ers head coach largely shut down questions about the two stars’ health on Tuesday after ruling both of them out for Wednesday’s matchup with the Detroit Pistons. Both Embiid and George are dealing with knee injuries, and they’ve yet to take the court this season.
While both players participated in parts of practice on Tuesday, Nurse ruled both of them out for Wednesday’s game at the Wells Fargo Center. As for when they will be able to make their season debuts, however, Nurse didn’t elaborate.
“We want these guys to play and we want them to be healthy and we want them to play great, and we want them to play great all season,” Nurse said. “Then my main focus is, I’ve got to do the job that I’ve got to do. I’ve got to try to get this team to play as good as it can tomorrow night. That takes a big chunk of my focus and whatever … I’m just trying to concentrate on my job at hand.”
Embiid has been held out of the season due to what the 76ers are calling left knee management. He played in just 39 games last season due to knee injuries, but he returned in time for the playoffs and he played with Team USA on their gold medal run at the Paris Olympics this summer.
Embiid also said he lost more than 25 pounds this past offseason in an effort to remain healthy and take stress off his knees. It’s unclear specifically what is holding him back now with his knee. Embiid also received a technical foul on Monday for waving a towel near their bench in the final moments of their overtime win against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
The league opened an investigation into the team’s handling of his injury, too, though the investigation determined that the 76ers did not violate player participation policy. The team still made statements that were “inconsistent” with Embiid’s health status, the NBA said, which is what led to the fine.
George, who signed a four-year, $212 million deal to join the 76ers this past offseason, has been dealing with a bone bruise in his knee after he went down in a preseason game. He did not sustain any structural damage in his knee, but it’s unclear when he will be able to take the court.
The 76ers, who hold a 1-2 record, will host the Piston on Wednesday and then the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday. They will then head out on a three-game west coast road trip next week.
Based on Nurse’s latest comments, it’s still anybody’s guess when Embiid and George will be ready to play for the 76ers.
