Joel Embiid has spent the last three months of the 2025 calendar year struggling to silence critics who questioned whether he could still play at an MVP level. Unfortunately, just when it seemed like Embiid was about to prove the skeptics wrong, the knee was bothered the main topic of conversation again.
Fortunately, between these two developments there was a period where Embiid looked like the best player in the NBA – and thus provided a real source of optimism for the 76ers.
Between the 76ers’ opener on October 22 and December 31, Embiid played a total of 14 games. To make matters worse, he shot an impressive 43.7 percent from the field and 25.0 percent from beyond the arc, while grabbing just 6.7 rebounds in 27.7 minutes per game.
To the surprise of no one living in a hot-take culture, the general public was overwhelmed by claims that Embiid had officially been overcome by injuries and was no longer the star he used to be.
How times have changed. Since January 1, Embiid is averaging 29.9 points per game on .535/.397/.867 shooting. Additionally, no NBA player has averaged more than Embiid’s 33.1 points per game over the last fifteen games. And he’s shot at .529/.529/.869 with unfathomable efficiency.
It’s undeniably concerning that he’s dealing with knee issues again, but Embiid has solidly proven that he can still be the best player in the world when healthy.
76ers superstar Joel Embiid has proven he’s still elite when healthy
While the primary concern will always be health and availability, there was a general sense of uncertainty as to whether or not Embiid could return to stardom. If the answer had been no, the 76ers would essentially be stuck with a max contract and a player who can’t play at the level they need him to.
As a result, it was reasonable to conclude that the 76ers would have been effectively eliminated from the championship equation before their rejuvenated team could take shape.
Fast forward to the All-Star break and Embiid’s resurgence is as remarkable as the issues he’s had with his knee. He has two months to get back to 100 percent in time for the playoffs, and if he does, he clearly still has the ability to impose himself in games.
That’s proven by the fact that since January 1, the 76ers are 12-5 when Embiid plays and 1-5 when he doesn’t.
The list of positive results includes wins over postseason teams in the Houston Rockets, New York Knicks, Phoenix Suns and Toronto Raptors. If anything, that gives the impression that Philadelphia can still compete at a high level when Embiid is healthy.
All eyes are on the 76ers’ injury report until further notice, but Embiid has at least put to rest any concerns about whether he can still play like the MVP and two-time scoring champion that he is.
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