Embiid Could Be Done

[slightly biased bias fan]

Out for season per Shams.  Team is going nowhere so might as well shut him down.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
?
20s
Philadelphia's Joel Embiid has been ruled out for the season.

Yep, I would not be surprised if they shut down Paul George soon too.

The upcoming 76ers draft pick is owed to Oklahoma City, but protected 1-6. Daryl Morey looking to cut their losses and tank to (hopefully) keep an important pick.

[Roy H.]

It sickens me that either Philly or OKC is going to end up with a great pick.

[radiohead]

It sickens me that either Philly or OKC is going to end up with a great pick.

I?d rather Philly gets it at this point.

[Phantom255x]

Out for season per Shams.  Team is going nowhere so might as well shut him down.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
?
20s
Philadelphia's Joel Embiid has been ruled out for the season.

Yep, I would not be surprised if they shut down Paul George soon too.

The upcoming 76ers draft pick is owed to Oklahoma City, but protected 1-6. Daryl Morey looking to cut their losses and tank to (hopefully) keep an important pick.

So Paul George can go back to doing his podcast again. Good for him! 

[BitterJim]

It sickens me that either Philly or OKC is going to end up with a great pick.

I?d rather Philly gets it at this point.

Given their track record with top picks since Embiid. Me too. Whoever they get will end up busting

[Who]

It sickens me that either Philly or OKC is going to end up with a great pick.

I?d rather Philly gets it at this point.

Ditto. I do not want OKC getting anymore high level talent.

This is a strong draft. They could get a very good player in that 7-10 range. They got J-Dub with the 12th pick the last time they were in this range. Imagine them getting another guy like him? Terrifying ... given the talent they already have.

[Goldstar88]

In Joel Embiid case, Sixers could petition for a medical retirement

Keith Smith: If Joel Embiid is unable to play, starting on February 22, 2026 (one year after his last game), the Sixers could petition for a medical retirement. At that point, an independent doctor selected by the NBA and NBPA would examine Embiid. If agreed he can no longer play, his remaining contract would be wiped off the books for the Sixers.  via x.com

[tazzmaniac]

It sickens me that either Philly or OKC is going to end up with a great pick.

I?d rather Philly gets it at this point.

Ditto. I do not want OKC getting anymore high level talent.

This is a strong draft. They could get a very good player in that 7-10 range. They got J-Dub with the 12th pick the last time they were in this range. Imagine them getting another guy like him? Terrifying ... given the talent they already have.

And they are only 24th in team salary and they still have a lot of future 1st rounders. 

[tazzmaniac]

In Joel Embiid case, Sixers could petition for a medical retirement

Keith Smith: If Joel Embiid is unable to play, starting on February 22, 2026 (one year after his last game), the Sixers could petition for a medical retirement. At that point, an independent doctor selected by the NBA and NBPA would examine Embiid. If agreed he can no longer play, his remaining contract would be wiped off the books for the Sixers.  via x.com

I assume that Embiid would still be paid.  What happens if the Sixers medically retire him and then he somehow gets healthy enough to play again?  Does he have to go back to the Sixers or is he a free agent?   

[Who]

In Joel Embiid case, Sixers could petition for a medical retirement

Keith Smith: If Joel Embiid is unable to play, starting on February 22, 2026 (one year after his last game), the Sixers could petition for a medical retirement. At that point, an independent doctor selected by the NBA and NBPA would examine Embiid. If agreed he can no longer play, his remaining contract would be wiped off the books for the Sixers.  via x.com

I assume that Embiid would still be paid.  What happens if the Sixers medically retire him and then he somehow gets healthy enough to play again?  Does he have to go back to the Sixers or is he a free agent?   

The Blazers went through that with Darius Miles. I think he became a FA after he returned. Is that how he ended up in Boston for a short run? I forget.

[keevsnick]

Just to be clear, there's no indication that the 76ers will seek a medical retirement. Keith Smith was just explaining how the process would work, not that the 76ers were or would pursue that route.

[Roy H.]

Here's how it worked under the last CBA:

There is one exception whereby a player can continue to receive his salary, but the salary is excluded from team salary. This is when a player suffers a career-ending injury or illness. The team must waive the player, and can apply for this salary exclusion following a waiting period. Only the player's team at the time the injury or illness was discovered (or reasonably should have been discovered) can apply for this salary exclusion.

The team can apply to have the player's salary excluded starting on the first anniversary of the player's last regular season or playoff game, and not before the one-year anniversary of the first regular season game for which the player was on the team's roster under his current contract. If the player played in fewer than 10 games in the last season in which he played, the team can apply on the one-year anniversary of the player's last regular season or playoff game, or 60 days after his last game in the current season, whichever is later.

The determination as to whether an injury or illness is career ending is made by a physician jointly selected by the league and players association, or by a Fitness to Play panel (see question number 62). The determination is based on whether the injury or illness will prevent the player from playing for the remainder of his career, or if it is severe enough that continuing to play constitutes a medically unacceptable risk.

If the injury exclusion is granted, the player's salary is removed from the team salary immediately.

If the player later "proves the doctors wrong" and resumes his career, then his salary is returned to the team salary when he plays in his 25th game1 in any one season, for any team. This allows a player to attempt to resume his career without affecting his previous team unless his comeback is ultimately successful.2 If the 25th game was a playoff game, then the player's salary is returned to the cap effective on the date of the team's last regular season game (i.e., the returned salary counts toward the luxury tax).

There are a few additional nuances to the salary exclusion:

If the player resumes his career and his salary is returned to the team salary, the team can re-apply for the salary exclusion under the same rules (including the rules for the waiting period).
If a player retires, even for medical reasons, his team does not receive a salary cap exception to acquire a replacement player.
A team can only apply for salary exclusion during the original term of a contract. If the player was waived and his salary stretched (see question number 64), the team must apply for the salary exclusion before the contract's original end date.
A team cannot apply for this salary exclusion if they have applied for a Disabled Player exception (see question number 25) that season, whether the exception was granted or not.
If this salary exclusion is granted, the team cannot re-sign or re-acquire the player at any time.
This salary exclusion can be used when a player dies while under contract.
1   They count only regular season and playoff games, and do not count preseason games. This was not specified prior to the 2011 CBA. During the 2008-09 season Darius Miles (whose salary was excluded from Portland's cap) played in 10 games for Boston and Memphis (the limit was 10 games at the time), which included preseason games. The league counted the preseason games toward the total, and returned Miles' salary to Portland's cap.
2   If the player's salary was excluded because a Fitness to Play panel determined that the player had a materially elevated risk of death, then the player's salary doesn't go back onto the team salary even if he plays in 25 games.

[tazzmaniac]

Just to be clear, there's no indication that the 76ers will seek a medical retirement. Keith Smith was just explaining how the process would work, not that the 76ers were or would pursue that route.

Not this year but they probably will if he can't play again next season. 

[Roy H.]

Just to be clear, there's no indication that the 76ers will seek a medical retirement. Keith Smith was just explaining how the process would work, not that the 76ers were or would pursue that route.

Not this year but they probably will if he can't play again next season.

A medical retirement on a giant contract is so risky.  Philly has to waive him first.  Let's say that Philly is given the cap space, and then they use it. Another team can come along and sign him to a minimum contract, play him minimal minutes in 25 games, and then pretty much destroy Philadelphia's salary cap for the foreseeable future.  They would be paying $60 million per year for a guy that did not play for them and thatthey could not trade.

If your Boston or New York, is it worth a roster spot and less than $3 million to destroy the Sixers economically?  They'd be a second apron team for sure, with no easy avenue to get out from underneath that.

[radiohead]

https://x.com/LegionHoops/status/1895865852387553465

I had a feeling this would happen. Philly would do anything to get out of that Embiid contract.