Aaaaaaand here comes the news everyone was dreading. Inquirer beat writer Keith Pompey is reporting that Joel Embiid will undergo a second surgery on his injured foot and will miss the 2015-16 regular season.
The 7-footer will have a second surgery after the latest setback in the healing of his right foot, according to several NBA sources. The team will decide whether to have it in North Carolina or at the New York Hospital of Special Surgery
“I would say there’s a great possibility that Embiid won’t play next year,” the source said. “Just think how long they sat him when they thought he was healthy.”
The Sixers are planning as if Embiid won’t play this season, sources say. Another source said the franchise is concerned that this setback could be career-threatening.
I assume we'll shortly get some sort of statement from the Sixers confirming this report, given how quickly they jumped on the original Woj report on Embiid's setback. This is clearly terrible news for Joel, an incredibly promising young player who has been as yet unable to show what he can do on the floor. However, depending on where you are personally at with "The Process," Okafor, and tanking, maybe this isn't the worst news for team building.
UPDATE (9:00 pm):
As expected, the Sixers released an official comment on the Embiid situation this evening. You can read the whole statement here, but this is the important part:
"After receiving the input of the aforementioned medical experts, as well as conversations with Joel and his representatives, there was careful consideration given to a number of options related to this particular situation. A collective decision has been made that the best approach to promote full healing would be to proceed with a bone graft of the fracture site. We anticipate the procedure will take place in the next 7-10 days and result in Joel missing the upcoming season."
Well there you have it. At least we know who the starting center will be opening night, right? Sigh …
