CAMDEN, N.J. — The Philadelphia 76ers will go as far as Joel Embiid takes them in the 2025-26 season. They know it. He knows it. He doesn’t run from it. He knows the challenge right in front of him and it’s all about preparing for what lies ahead.
Embiid has never shied away from talking about his mental health. He has taken a lot of criticism in the past due to his injury issues and he has had to overcome a lot in terms of the injuries. The injuries plus the outside noise can be a lot to handle for anybody and the big fella has had to battle through all of the adversity.
As he heads into camp after a season in which he played only 19 games, he is in a much better place in terms of his mental.
“Obviously, this time last year, I think going into training camp, I didn’t really know what was possible and what I was going to be able to do which I didn’t end up doing much,” Embiid said. “This time was a different story. Mentally, I feel better. I got great people around me. That’s all that matters. They keep me up. Keep staying positive and, obviously, it helps that we’re in a different situation than a year ago this time right before training camp. So, it’s a good start and, yeah. Just gotta keep going.”
While his mental health has improved, one does have to wonder about his physical health. Embiid plays so hard on both ends of the floor on a nightly basis and one bad fall could absolutely aggravate that left knee. One has to wonder if a change in his style of play could prolong his career and keep him on the floor for the Sixers.
“That’s tough,” Embiid pondered. “I mean, I think about it, but then again, you can’t get out of all I know is—ever since I started—was to play hard. Play both ends. There’s a lot of people in the league that play one side. Whether it’s offense or defense and a lot of times, for me, my mentality is do whatever it takes to win. For all of my career, it’s been having to do both.”
Embiid has always made sure he’s in a position to make sure the Sixers can win. He deserves so much credit for continuing to battle through all of the injuries his body has dealt with in his career, but still gets up to lead the Sixers. A change in his style would probably help, but he doesn’t want to take anything away from what he brings to the floor either.
“There’s some guys that are asked to do a lot offensively and take plays off defensively, and there’s guys that are asked to be the best defenders, and kind of, like, chill in the corner,” Embiid finished. “I don’t blame them. I’ve gotten to this point because of how good I am on both ends of the floor so if you’re asking me to change the way I play. The only guess that I have is either play offense fully and take plays off defensively, which doesn’t suit me. I don’t think I would ever be OK with that so I don’t know. I think we’ll just wait and see, but if it’s gotta be that way, it’s definitely gonna be an adjustment, but I don’t see that happening.”
The big fella will be looking to lead the Sixers back into championship contention in the upcoming season.
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