Breaking News: Joel Embiid Out Indefinitely With Multiple Injuries To Face & Head

In a stunning and unfortunate development, the Philadelphia 76ers will be without MVP-candidate Joel Embiid for the start of their series with the Miami Heat, "with no timetable for his return."

Sources: 76ers All-NBA star Joel Embiid suffered a right orbital fracture and mild concussion in series-clinching Game 6 win last night in Toronto. He will be listed as out and there is no timetable for his return.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 30, 2022

Embiid suffered a right orbital fracture and a mild concussion in the Sixers' series-clinching Game 6 win Thursday night in Toronto. It occurred during this play (seen above), an aggressive drive to the basket from Pascal Siakam late in the 4th quarter, for which Siakam directly apologized to Embiid right after the buzzer:

Joel Embiid and Pascal Siakam show love after Game 6 🤝 pic.twitter.com/o2wKysreSQ

— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 29, 2022

Why Embiid was still in the game with the Sixers up by nearly 30 points and 4 minutes left is another question entirely, one that perhaps Doc Rivers can answer. 

Why are Embiid and Harden still in up 27 with less than 4 minutes to go? Seems risky since they are both injured.

— Scott (@greedisgood70) April 29, 2022

NBA injury expert Jeff Stotts explains that there is a lot of variability to injuries such as this.

Re: Joel Embiid: Orbital fractures have a decent amount of variability due to multiple factors including the bones involved, possible displacement, size of the actual fx, & any soft tissue or eye damage. Surgery may be warranted if the damage is severe & a bone has displaced. 1/3

— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) April 30, 2022

Stotts says that due to multiple factors including the bones involved, possible displacement, & any soft tissue or eye damage, it's difficult to put a timetable on recovery. He adds that surgery is even a possibility in severe cases. 

The 28-year-old big man was already playing through a torn ligament in his thumb, and vowed to not let that stop him. But the facial and head injuries suffered on that play have him on the shelf. 

Embiid averaged 26.2 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in the 6-game series with Toronto, after posting a career-best 30.6 points, along with 11.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists in the regular season.