NBA Fines 76ers $50,000 For Handling Of Joel Embiid's Injury Status
The NBA fined the 76ers $50,000 Saturday for violating the league's injury reporting rules during their handling of star center Joel Embiid's return to the lineup.
Embiid, made his Second Round series debut against the Heat in Game 3 Friday night, after suffering a right facial fracture and mild concussion in the First Round series against the Raptors. Per the Philadelphia Inquirer, the league said that the 76ers "failed to disclose participation status in an accurate and timely manner" prior to the game.
Embiid was reportedly listed as out on Thursday's injury report. Multiple outlets then reported early Friday that Embiid had cleared concussion protocols and had a shot to play barring any setbacks during pregame warmups. At that point, Embiid was now listed as doubtful.
Head coach Doc Rivers then said Embiid's final status would be determined following his pregame warmup. Embiid was all systems go from there and was upgraded to play minutes after he left the floor.
JOEL EMBIID RETURNS FROM INJURY TO LEAD 76ERS TO DOMINANT VICTORY OVER HEAT IN GAME 3
In 36 minutes of action, Embiid scored 18 points on 5-of-12 shooting with 11 rebounds. His presence on the court helped lead the 76ers to a 99-79 victory to give Philadelphia its first win of the series.
“I felt like he was gonna play morning, but I didn’t know. But I felt like it. He did our whole walk-through, which, again, we didn’t do a lot,” Rivers said after the game. “He didn’t take a lot of shots, which made me start getting a little concerned. ... But by mid-afternoon, I was pretty positive .”
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