Joel Embiid hasn't played a game this season, and while the Philadelphia 76ers schedule is only five games old, the All-Star big man is likely already mathematically eliminated from the MVP race.
Embiid has been sidelined with "left knee injury management" but said this week that his return could be right around the corner. He was a full participant in Friday's practice and played in a 5x5 scrimmage but missed Saturday's 124-107 loss to the Grizzlies. Whenever he and Paul George -- who has also been out since the preseason -- return to action, it will surely right the ship of an otherwise disappointing start to the season for a Sixers team with championship aspirations.
But even if Embiid does put together another MVP-caliber season, he's likely already been eliminated from the MVP race or any other end-of-season awards, such as Defensive Player of the Year and All-NBA and All-Defensive teams. He's missed the first five games of the season, and last month, Embiid said he would "never play back-to-backs the rest of my career." If that is the case, you can tack on another 15 missed games, which means, at most, he will play in 62 games this season. That's below the 65-game threshold the league now requires players to participate in to be eligible for MVP and other awards.
There's always a chance that Embiid could play in a couple of those back-to-backs to remain eligible. Still, five of Philadelphia's 15 back-to-backs come in March, when playoff-contending teams are even more strategic about playing key players if nothing important is on the line.
That approach also assumes that Embiid won't miss games for any other reason, which can't be counted on given his injury history. He and the Sixers have been clear that they plan on being cautious with his playing time this season to ensure he's healthy for the postseason, and Embiid told ESPN, "I've accomplished everything [individually], but there's one thing missing, which is to win a championship."
When the league established the 65-game threshold last season, Embiid said he wouldn't push his body just to meet the award requirements.
"At the end of the day, if there's something going on and I can't meet the requirement for the amount of games played to qualify for that, then so be it," Embiid said last year. "But one thing we're not gonna do is push for it to try and make the requirement. If I'm healthy enough and these guys are letting me play, then I'll play. But if they tell me you gotta chill, then I'll chill."
With that in mind, it seems Embiid isn't too concerned about racking up individual awards. And after missing out on All-NBA and the MVP race a season ago because he only played in 39 games, we're likely headed for another season where Embiid isn't eligible for that hardware again. That's not too surprising given the injuries he's dealt with over the years, but no one could've predicted that Embiid would be out of the running just five games into the season.
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