The 76ers ruled out Embiid for the rest of the season on Feb. 28 after he continued to be affected by ongoing left knee issues. He and the team have been consulting with medical specialists and weighing treatment options in the weeks since then and have decided to go the surgical route. According to Charania, Embiid will be reevaluated six weeks after the procedure and is expected to make a full recovery. The knee in question is the same one the former MVP underwent surgery on in February 2024 after he suffered a lateral meniscus injury. Embiid was able to return last April and played all six games of the Sixers’ first-round playoff series vs. New York in the spring before suiting up for Team USA at the Paris Olympics over the summer. However, he continued to deal with swelling in the knee in the fall, which delayed his season debut until Nov. 12. He never looked fully healthy after that, making just 19 appearances this season and averaging 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 30.2 minutes per game. While those numbers would be impressive for most players, the scoring and rebounding rates were well below Embiid’s career averages, as were his 44.4% field goal percentage and 29.9% mark on three-pointers. Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reported in February that Embiid had met with more than 10 doctors over the course of the season in an attempt to figure out the best way to reduce — or, ideally, eliminate — the discomfort and swelling in that troublesome left knee. Embiid told Lisa Salters of ABC/ESPN earlier in February that he may require offseason surgery, which reportedly took Sixers staffers by surprise, since the team had still been hoping at that point that non-surgical treatment and maintenance could help the big man regain his All-NBA form. Getting Embiid fully healthy again is the Sixers’ number one priority, since the franchise has invested heavily in his long-term future. He is owed $179M in guaranteed money over the next three seasons, with a $69M player option for the 2028-29 season.