76ers' Andre Drummond defends Joel Embiid's DNP's amid disappointing season
01/20/2025 04:59 PM
Things haven’t boded well for Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers throughout the 2024-25 NBA season. And with Embiid having several absences, Andre Drummond came to the star’s defense.
Drummond was a special guest on an episode of the Podcast P with Paul George presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment, uploaded to YouTube on Monday. The 76ers teammates discussed how the team is staying focused despite the season’s challenging start.
Another topic they went over was Embiid’s DNPs this season. The star center has only appeared in 13 games, missing out on 28 contests due to injury and load management on back-to-backs. Drummond asserted the 76ers star is still working hard to help the team win games despite his current situation.
“Joel's been the same guy, he works hard, he works very hard. When he's able and capable of playing, he's one of the most hard-working people. He does the necessary things he needs to, to get his body right when it's time to play,” Drummond said at the 25:02 mark.
“You know some of these things are out of his control. So he tries to do the best that he can when he can, but the media, the media. They're always going to have a story. There's always going to be a story, no one really knows the work that he puts in to get right.”
Joel Embiid, 76ers must get past struggles for better 2nd half of season
When Joel Embiid is healthy, the Philadelphia 76ers present themselves as a threat against any team in the league.
However, his inability to stay on the court has held back the team’s potential with a supposed star trio of Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey. George has also missed time this year due to injuries, being absent from 14 games, while Maxey was out for seven contests.
In the 13 games he’s taken part in, Embiid averaged 24.4 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists. His shot efficiency has dipped with him being in and out of the lineup, currently at 45.2% from the field and 32.7% from beyond the arc.
Philadelphia is going through a six-game losing streak, falling to a 15-26 record as they begin the second half of the regular season. They are 11th in the Eastern Conference standings, trailing the Chicago Bulls by two games for what would be the last play-in spot.
To make a run for the playoffs, the 76ers must continue to manage Embiid’s health as best as they can while the season winds down. Anything else would otherwise put his long-term health and future with the franchise at risk.
The 76ers will prepare for their next three matchups against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday, the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, and the Bulls on Saturday.
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