PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid started for the Philadelphia 76ers in their preseason finale on Friday night, his first game action in nearly eight months.
And he flirted with a triple-double.
Embiid — who was limited to 19 games last season because of injuries — finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in 19 minutes in Philadelphia's 126-110 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. He also had three steals, and the 76ers outscored the Wolves by 12 points when Embiid was on the floor.
Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse said before the game that Embiid would have “fairly short” stints of action and held true to that plan. Embiid didn't play in the fourth quarter.
The 76ers open the regular season at Boston on Wednesday night.
Embiid didn't take long to get going Friday — he tried a 3-pointer, which missed, on Philadelphia's first possession just seven seconds into the contest. He played about six minutes in his first stint to open the game, then played the first three minutes of the second quarter for his second stint.
It was Embiid's first game since Feb. 22. He missed the first nine games of Philadelphia's 2024-25 season, never played more than four consecutive games and wound up being shut down for the final 26 games of the year as the 76ers sputtered to a 24-58 finish.
Embiid has been engaged in light practices since the 76ers opened camp and the perennially injured All-Star center has said in recent weeks that there was a “plan in place” to play following knee surgery in April.
A two-time NBA scoring champion, Embiid had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in April following an injury-plagued season that also included a sprained left foot and a sinus fracture. He was ruled out for the season in late February after averaging 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists.
“I’ve had so many injuries,” Embiid said last month. “The only thing I’ve always told myself is you can’t give up.”