Sixers superstar Joel Embiid is being treated for a mild case of Bell’s palsy for the past week, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The condition began in the play-in game against Miami, but according to Wojnarowski, Embiid kept it a secret to not allow for distractions.
There’s been some speculation circling why Embiid was wearing sunglasses and if that was related to an eye issue, but Wojnarowski reports that it’s because of Bell’s palsy (Twitter link). Bell’s palsy is an episode of facial muscle weakness or paralysis.
According to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps, Embiid said dealing with the condition was “pretty annoying” (Twitter link). “It’s unfortunate … got to keep pushing,” Embiid said.
Embiid didn’t let the condition prevent him from making an impact in the series, and he dropped a playoff career-high 50 points to defeat the Knicks in Game 3. As the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy writes, Embiid was physical and efficient in the game, connecting on 13 of his 19 shot attempts. He had 18 points in the third quarter.
We have more from the Sixers:
- Kelly Oubre was involved in a car accident after Game 2, according to TMZ. The wreck happened in the earlier hours of Tuesday morning, with police saying Oubre “disregarded a red traffic signal” and ran into another car. No one reported any injuries but both cars had to be towed from scene. Philadelphia Inquirer’s Gina Mizell confirmed the report (Twitter link).
- Before Philadelphia’s Game 3 victory, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps explored reasons the 2-0 deficit wasn’t as dire as it seemed. Bontemps writes of several keys to the rest of the series, including the impressive play of Tyrese Maxey and Embiid’s ability to play through injuries. In addition, Cameron Payne delivered 11 points in 16 minutes off the bench in Game 3 after Bontemps pointed out Philly’s role players had been somewhat limited in the first two games.
- Despite announcing issues with how Game 2 was officiating, Philadelphia didn’t file a formal protest and instead let the deadline pass, Bondy writes in a separate piece. In the playoffs, a protest “must be filed not later than midnight of the day of the game protested.“
- Embiid and Mitchell Robinson got tangled up in Game 3, resulting in Embiid being issued a flagrant 1 foul. According to the pool report, crew chief Zach Zarba said there wasn’t excessive contact, and that’s why it didn’t rise to a flagrant 2 (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Fred Katz). “The crew was unanimous along with the replay center official in Secaucus that this foul was unnecessary but did not rise to the level of a flagrant 2,” Zarba said.