Joel Embiid Diagnosed With Appendicitis, Undergoes Surgery

News broke around 1 pm on Wednesday that Joel Embiid was out for Thursday Night's game vs. the Rockets. It was not until a few hours later that we figured out just what that meant. The Sixers announced that their star center had been diagnosed with appendicitis and would undergo surgery in Houston.

There is currently no timetable for a return. But it is not the type of thing someone bounces back from in a couple of days. Embiid will likely miss extended time. Tough news for a team that is trying to stay out of the play-in. But they may not even have Embiid for a play-in game or in the playoffs. Other players have missed over a month after the procedure.

Tony Jones from The Athletic discussed the timeline for a return when he joined Unfiltered after the news broke.

"He is definitely out for the remainder of the regular season… Usually, for a surgery like that, you are supposed to not do anything physical for 10-14 days… You are looking at a timeline; if everything goes well, maybe 3 weeks. And 3 weeks from now, it is highly questionable that the Sixers are still playing basketball."

It is the latest in a long string of weird injuries and illnesses in his career. Embiid has suffered a fractured orbital bone twice in his career, leading to him wearing a mask on the court. Vs the Raptors in the playoffs, he famously played through gastroenteritis. A couple of years ago, he played through Bell's Palsy vs the Knicks in the playoffs.

The second round of the playoffs is likely the earliest you could see him, barring a miracle recovery. Will they even make it there? They have fallen to the 8 seed. They will need to win a play-in game, and then will need to beat the Pistons or the Celtics.

Beating one of those teams with Embiid would be tough. Without him? The Sixers could be in big trouble.