Joel Embiid is back.
The Philadelphia 76ers announced that their former MVP center is available Tuesday night against the Dallas Mavericks following a 15-game absence with foot and knee injuries.
Unfortunately for the Mavericks, they won’t counter with Anthony Davis, who was previously ruled out for Tuesday’s game following his arrival via trade from the Los Angeles Lakers. He’s dealing with a lingering abdominal strain and could potentially be available for Thursday’s NBA Finals rematch between the Mavericks and Celtics.
Regardless of Davis’ status, that Celtics-Mavericks game will take on a decidedly different tone following the trade of All-NBA guard Luka Dončić to the Lakers. For Tuesday, the Mavericks will play shorthanded for a second consecutive game since dealing Dončić.
They’ll do so against a 76ers team buoyed by the return of their oft-injured All-Star. Due to various reasons including suspension injury management and the foot sprain and knee swelling that have sidelined him recently, Embiid has played in just 13 of Philadelphia’s 38 games this season.
A 76ers team with the goal of competing atop the Eastern Conference is instead 19-29, good for 11th place in the conference heading into Tuesday’s game. Philadelphia will continue to play on Tuesday without nine-time All-Star forward Paul George, who will miss his fifth-straight game with a tendon injury in his left pinkie. The absence will be the 19th of the season for George since he arrived via offseason trade from the Clippers.
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