PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid returned to a rousing ovation from 76ers fans in his first game of the season, a start marred by injuries and suspension to the All-Star center that kept Philadelphia anchored at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Embiid wasted no time giving the Sixers a tantalizing glimpse against the New York Knicks on Tuesday night of what could be — a dish to fellow oft-injured All Star Paul George for a layup to open the game.
“He's looked good,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said of Embiid before the game. “He's done a lot of work to get ready here. He looks pretty good. You've got to go out there and do it live.”
Embiid, wearing a brace on his surgically repaired left knee, pointed skyward as he hit the court for pregame warmups and looked in shape and ready to roll for his debut.
He had already stuck around for extra work after shootaround. The 7-footer was in no rush to finish his drills.
Embiid shot free throws, worked on his post game and made soft jumpers during a Tuesday morning workout in preparation of his season debut and his first game playing with George, who joined the Sixers over the summer on a four-year, $212 million contract.
Without Embiid, the Sixers entered 2-7.
“It's the right step in the right direction we're trying to get to,” Sixers forward Caleb Martin said. “Obviously, excited to have someone like him back to our team.”
Embiid, George and fellow All-Star Tyrese Maxey, out with a right hamstring injury, were the 76ers' version of a Big Three that was expected to make them one of the big favorites out of the East.
The trio instead has yet to play a game together.
“We've had our struggles without them,” Nurse said. “It's important for us to get into some phase of figuring out what we look like with those guys all here and how that moves the other pieces around. What guys can get on the floor with who. try to start building some chemistry."
The 76ers are coming off an overtime win over Charlotte but face an uphill climb into playoff contention.
There have been 20 teams in NBA history to make the playoffs after starting 1-6 or 0-7, though it’s been extremely rare in recent years. In the last 27 years, only three teams -- the 2003-04 Miami Heat (0-7), the 2004-05 Chicago Bulls (0-7) and the 2021-22 New Orleans Pelicans (1-6) had such a start and went on to make the playoffs.
Embiid's return can only force the push toward a winning record.
A seven-time All-Star, Embiid returns from what the team called left knee management and the end of a three-game suspension for shoving a member of the media.
By his own admission, Embiid says he won’t play back-to-back games this season, meaning he’ll sit out Wednesday against Cleveland. The next set of back-to-backs are Dec. 3 at Charlotte and a Dec. 4 home game against Orlando.
Play him at home in front of fans who paid exorbitant ticket prices this season to watch Andre Drummond at center, right?
No so fast.
Much like Tuesday's game against the Knicks, the Hornets game was designated as part of the NBA Cup round-robin schedule.
The 76ers have been open since the preseason on how they intended to use Embiid this season — manage his minutes and games played to the point where they can safely navigate him to the postseason healthy for the first time in his career.
Nurse, the sports science departments and the front office face a thorny situation on deciding when Embiid will suit up this season. Plus, with Embiid, there's no guarantee he simply won't get injured again, a blow that would send the franchise closer to the draft lottery than chasing its first NBA championship since 1983.
Any potential setbacks with Embiid are worries for another day.
On Tuesday, Embiid banners decorated the Wells Fargo Center concourse and his teammates — and fans — were excited to have him play for the first time since he helped the U.S. win a gold medal in the Paris Olympics.
“You've got to expect there to be hiccups and kinks and stuff like that,” Martin said. “Understand that's what comes with putting a new team together and bringing pieces back. Just expect the unexpected.”
Hey, it's the 76ers' way.
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Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid looks over the court after an NBA basketball game against the Memphis Grizzlies, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Joel Embiid set to return to slumping 76ers team in need of his presence
Joel Embiid set to return to slumping 76ers team in need of his presence
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Janet Rapp strode briskly down a paved path through the city zoo, waving at friends and stopping briefly to greet emus she knows by name.
The 71-year-old retiree starts each morning this way with a walking club.
“I’m obsessed,” she said. Not only does it ease her joint pain, “it just gives me energy … And then it calms me, too.”
Medical experts agree that walking is an easy way to improve physical and mental health, bolster fitness and prevent disease. While it’s not the only sort of exercise people should do, it’s a great first step toward a healthy life.
“You don’t need equipment and you don’t need a gym membership,” said Dr. Sarah Eby, a sports medicine physician with Mass General Brigham. “And the benefits are so vast.”
Walking can help meet the U.S. surgeon general’s recommendation that adults get at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate-intensity physical activity every week. This helps lowers the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, dementia, depression and many types of cancer.
Walking also improves blood sugar levels, is good for bone health and can help you lose weight and sleep better, added Julie Schmied, a nurse practitioner with Norton Healthcare, which runs the free Get Healthy Walking Club.
Another advantage? It’s a low-impact exercise that puts less pressure on joints as it strengthens your heart and lungs.
James Blankenship, 68, said joining the walking club at the Louisville Zoo last year helped him bounce back after a heart attack and triple bypass in 2022.
“My cardiologist says I’m doing great,” he said.
For all its benefits, however, walking “is not enough for overall health and well-being” because it doesn’t provide resistance training that builds muscle strength and endurance, said Anita Gust, who teaches exercise science at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
That's especially important for women’s bone health as they age.
Experts recommend adding such activities at least twice weekly – using weights, gym equipment or your own body as resistance — and doing exercises that improve flexibility like yoga or stretching.
Nearly everyone has heard about this walking goal, which dates back to a 1960s marketing campaign in Japan. But experts stress that it’s just a guideline.
The average American walks about 3,000 to 4,000 steps a day and it's fine to gradually work up to 10,000, Shmied said.
Setting a time goal can also be useful. Shmied suggests breaking the recommended 150 minutes per week into 30 minutes a day, or 10 minutes three times a day, for five days. During inclement weather, people can walk in malls or on treadmills.
As they become seasoned walkers, they can speed up the pace or challenge themselves with hills while still keeping the activity level moderate.
“If you can talk but not sing,” Eby said, “that’s what we consider moderate-intensity exercise.”
Walking with friends – including dogs – is one way.
Walking clubs have popped up across the nation. In 2022, New York personal trainer Brianna Joye Kohn, 31, started City Girls Who Walk with a TikTok post inviting others to walk with her.
“We had 250 girls show up,” she said.
Since then, the group has walked every Sunday for around 40 minutes, with some meeting afterward for brunch or coffee.
The Louisville Zoo launched its walking club in 1987, partnered with Norton in 2004 to expand it, and now boasts more than 15,000 registered members. Every day from March 1 through Oct. 31, people walk around and around the 1.4-mile loop before the zoo officially opens.
Tony Weiter meets two of his siblings every Friday. On a recent morning, they caught up on each other’s lives as they zipped past zebras in a fenced field and a seal sunning itself.
“I enjoy the serenity of it. It’s cold but the sun is shining. You get to see the animals,” said Weiter, 63. “It’s a great way to start the morning.”
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk a path past the giraffe enclosure during the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
From left, Lou Ann Parrino, Lisa Weisert, and Janie Reinert, members of the Get Healthy Walking Club pause during their morning walk to say good morning to one of the animals at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
A member of the Get Healthy Walking Club walks past the rhinoceros exhibit in the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk the paths past the animal enclosures during the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk the paths past the animal enclosures during the early morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Janet Rapp, a member of the Get Healthy Walking Club stands in front of the zebra enclosure during the early morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk the paths past the animal enclosures during the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk a path past the giraffe enclosure during the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
From left, Lou Ann Parrino, Lisa Weisert, and Janie Reinert, members of the Get Healthy Walking Club pause during their morning walk to say good morning to one of the animals at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
A member of the Get Healthy Walking Club walks past the rhinoceros exhibit in the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk the paths past the animal enclosures during the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk the paths past the animal enclosures during the early morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Janet Rapp, a member of the Get Healthy Walking Club stands in front of the zebra enclosure during the early morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
Members of the Get Healthy Walking Club walk the paths past the animal enclosures during the morning at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)
