76ers' Guerschon Yabusele 'excited' for eventual Joel Embiid, Paul George returns
11/02/2024 11:01 AM
CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers are anticipating the returns of Joel Embiid and Paul George, who are recovering from respective injuries with their left knees. Although they still have plenty of progress to make, a position change nears for Guerschon Yabusele when the stars come back. He’s excited to go through with it — because it means his star teammates will be back.
Yabusele has occupied the backup center spot behind Andre Drummond to start his second NBA stint. The Sixers intend to use him as a power forward — and they still have at times — but need him to play behind Drummond because rookie Adem Bona is not yet ready for extended NBA minutes.
"I think when Joel’s back, I’m gonna be playing more at the four," Yabusele said. "But it’s something that I’m excited for. We got two of the best players in the world on our team that are coming back. For sure,I’m excited for them tobe able to be here,tobe able to be with them on the court andcompete. It’s gonna be another role for me but I’m excited for the new role."
76ers working to get Joel Embiid, Paul George back in action
Yabusele said that "everything is different" playing at center than power forward. It requires guarding and participating in a lot more pick-and-rolls. It's still a work in progress. Even with Embiid’s return seemingly on the horizon, it’s helpful for him to keep learning.
After the Sixers’ Friday practice, in which Embiid and George were full participants, Nick Nurse said that the team was able to have "a normal day at the office, practice-wise."
Nick Nurse said having Joel Embiid and Paul George in scrimmages makes it feel more like "a normal day at the office." pic.twitter.com/bLRzDWTpJw
— Sam DiGiovanni (@BySamDiGiovanni) November 1, 2024
"It’s just such a goodstepmovingforward,right?That’salsopositive," Nurse said. "Givesussome more bodies out there. We can move some things around, we can getsomesubs in, subs out. More normal butcertainly a step in the right direction."
Embiid is still without a firm return date and George is still ramping up his cardio. Both players are out for the Sixers’ home matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies but are making progress toward their eventual returns. As evidenced by its 1-3 start, Philly needs them back.
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