NBA: Embiid hit in face, misses 2nd half of 76ers’ loss to Pacers

Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid, center, gets helped off the court after getting hit in the face during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Indiana Pacers, Friday, Dec. 13, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid left the Philadelphia 76ers’ game against the Indiana Pacers shortly before halftime Friday night after being struck in the face going for a defensive rebound.

Embiid was battling Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin when he caught an errant forearm and elbow to the bridge of the nose. Embiid crumpled to the ground as play continued up floor and stayed down near the Philadelphia bench, holding his face.

The team ruled him out early in the second half with “impact to the right side of the face” in the cheek and nose area. There was no immediate word on injury severity on Embiid, who had left Wells Fargo Center for evaluation.

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“He’s getting tested on that,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said.

Embiid had 12 points, four rebounds and five assists in 17 1/2 minutes in Philadelphia’s 121-107 loss to the Pacers.

Embiid was only playing his sixth game out of the 23 that Philadelphia has played. He has been bothered by swelling in his left knee and also served a three-game suspension for a physical incident with a reporter.

Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Paul George – billed as Philadelphia’s “Big Three” after George’s offseason arrival — have played parts of only three games together. The Sixers are 7-16 on the season.

“You just have to move on and practice when we practice again and have a next man up mentality,” said Maxey, who led Philadelphia with 22 points. “What sucks about this is that we were moving in the right direction. Guys were figuring out roles, what coach wants from them and playing the right way. We know how to play with Joel – and now, we may have to revert our minds back to playing without him. That’s OK. It’s different. That’s how life is.”

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Embiid also has had number of face injuries, including an orbital bone fracture after a collision with Toronto’s Pascal Siakam during the 2022 playoffs and one in 2018 after colliding with teammate Markelle Fultz. Last year, Embiid had Bell’s Palsy during a first-round playoff loss to New York.

Embiid told ESPN after Sunday’s win in Chicago that his left knee issues this season were “depressing” because of the swelling not being related to an injury. That was Philadelphia’s last game before Friday.

“He’s been in a really good place all week and he practiced all week,” Nurse said when asked about Embiid’s state of mind. “We did a lot of stuff to get up to speed with him. But I can imagine that he can feel like the black cloud is over him a little bit. He just keeps running into something, really, unfortunately.”