PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has an injured lateral meniscus in his left knee and will miss games at least through the weekend.
Embiid was already set to sit out Thursday night at Utah and will now also miss a game Saturday against Brooklyn.
Embiid hurt his left knee Tuesday night in a loss to the Golden State Warriors. He underwent an MRI that revealed the injury. The 76ers are still finalizing a treatment plan.
Embiid was hurt after Golden State’s Jonathan Kuminga fell on the 7-footer’s left leg.
This game marked Embiid’s return to action after an issue with his left knee prevented him from playing Saturday at Denver - scrapping a highly anticipated matchup with two-time MVP Nikola Jokic - and Monday at Portland.
Embiid already has missed 12 games this season, jeopardizing his chances of being eligible for a second straight MVP award. The new collective bargaining agreement requires players, in most instances, to play in 65 regular-season games to be eligible for awards such as MVP or the All-NBA teams.
When healthy, Embiid has continued to perform at an MVP level. He is the NBA’s leading scorer at 35.3 points per game and is averaging 11.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists. He scored a franchise-record 70 points to go along with 18 rebounds on Jan. 22 in a 133-124 victory over San Antonio.
Earlier Thursday, the 76ers were handed a $75,000 fine for failing to include Embiid on their injury report “in an accurate and timely manner” before their Saturday game at Denver.
Embiid hadn’t been included on the 76ers’ injury report Saturday, but the reigning MVP was scratched from their lineup minutes before tipoff after he had discomfort in his left knee during warmups.
NBA officials said the fine took into account Philadelphia’s prior history of fines for violating injury reporting rules. The league review concluded that there was no violation of the league’s player participation policy because Embiid’s absence was because of a confirmed injury.
The 76ers are 0-4 on their five-game trip.
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