Joel Embiid is back, the 76ers are 2-0 with him — including a massively important win over the Heat. They are suddenly looking like a real threat in the East.
However, the process of getting him back will cost the 76ers $100,000.
The NBA dropped the six-figure fine on the Philadelphia organization Friday for “violating league injury reporting rules.” From the official league release:
The 76ers failed to accurately disclose the game availability status of Joel Embiid prior to their game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2. Embiid was listed as “Out” in Philadelphia’s initial injury report and subsequently played in the game. The fine takes into account the 76ers’ prior history of fines for violating injury reporting rules.
Embiid was listed as out 24 hours before the game and was not part of the shootaround that morning, when he was still listed as out. That all changed a couple of hours before tip-off, suddenly he was available. In a world where the NBA is sponsored by and working with sports books, transparency about who is in and who is out becomes much more critical.
Philly has done things like this a few times, dating back to Game 3 of a playoff series a couple of years ago against the Heat (when, again, Embiid was coming off a knee injury). That led to the larger fine, but after a couple of wins will Philly care?
