The NBA fined the 76ers $100,000 for violating the league’s injury reporting rules. Philadelphia initially ruled star center Joel Embiid out for a Nov. 30 contest against the Hawks, but he ended up playing in the resulting 142-134 double-overtime loss. The final line of the release — “The fine takes into account the 76ers’ prior history of fines for violating injury reporting rules.” — is notable.
The NBA fined Philadelphia $75,000 in February 2024 for not disclosing Embiid’s nagging knee soreness on their injury report ahead of a showdown with the Denver Nuggets and Nikola Jokić that Embiid did not play in. At the time, the two were in a closely contested MVP race.
A few months later, the NBA fined the 76ers $100,000 for a incident similar to this most recent one: Embiid was listed as “Out” for a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, but he ended up playing.
The following season, in October 2024, the NBA fined Philadelphia $100,000 for public statements from general manager Daryl Morey and coach Nick Nurse that were “inconsistent with Joel Embiid’s health status and in violation of NBA rules, including the league’s Player Participation Policy.”
Embiid has played in just seven of Philadelphia’s 20 games this year. He missed nine consecutive contests leading up to the Hawks game in question due to “right knee injury management.” He missed Tuesday night’s game against the Wizards — two days after the Hawks game — due to “right knee injury recovery.”
Embiid played in just 19 games last year due to a left knee injury that required surgery.
Overall this season, Embiid averages 19.4 points and 5.3 rebounds in 24.3 minutes per game. All three averages are on pace to be career lows. The 76ers are 11-9 despite injuries to Embiid, Paul George and Kelly Oubre Jr., among others.
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