According to Rogers Sportsnet on Saturday, Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid of Yaounde, Cameroon returned to the lineup after having a serious bout of coronavirus. For Embiid, it was reportedly so bad, he actually thought he had a near death experience.
In 45 minutes and 26 seconds of action, Embiid had a double-double, as he had 42 points and 14 rebounds. Embiid’s presence was not enough as Philadelphia lost a tight contest by a score of 121-120 to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In nine games without their star center, Philadelphia struggled mightily. They lost seven of nine games, and now they have lost eight of 10 games. Philadelphia meanwhile is at the .500 mark at 10 wins and 10 losses, and are only tied for 10th with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference.
So far in 2021-22, Embiid is averaging 23.5 points per game, 10 rebounds per game, and 3.9 assists per game. He also has 1.5 blocks per game, a .447 field goal percentage, a .405 three-point percentage, and a .776 free throw percentage.
Let’s not kid ourselves. In order for the 76ers to once again make a name for themselves as a powerhouse in the Eastern Conference, they desperately need Australia’s own Ben Simmons to return to the lineup too. Simmons has not played at all this season due to mental health issues.
Embiid’s latest reported bout of coronavirus is just the latest example that the disease needs to be taken seriously. There have been 1,731, 154 cases of coronavirus in the state of Pennsylvania alone and 33,308 deaths. There were 25 new deaths in Pennsylvania over the last 24 hours, the most among any American state according to Worldometer.
