Joel Embiid is sidelined once again.
A Sixers official said Saturday that an MRI revealed Embiid suffered a strained right oblique during the team’s win Thursday night over the Heat.
He’ll miss the Sixers’ next three games and then be re-evaluated. After visiting the Celtics on Sunday, the Sixers will host the Spurs and Jazz in a back-to-back on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Though Embiid exited in the second quarter against Miami, he returned to action and logged 31 minutes. Despite dealing with clear discomfort on his right side, Embiid posted 26 points, including a late game-icing three-pointer, and grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Sixers have been much better this year when Embiid’s played, which has been the norm throughout his career. They’ve gone 21-12 with him and 12-14 without him. According to Cleaning the Glass, the team’s net rating has been eight points better with Embiid on the court compared to off.
Embiid’s often played at an All-Star level when available this season and was outstanding in December and January. He’s averaged 26.6 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 33 games.
While Dominick Barlow got a short stint at center after Embiid went to the locker room Thursday, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse has generally stuck with Adem Bona and Andre Drummond as his big men in Embiid-less games.
In other injury news, the Sixers announced Saturday that rookie Johni Broome underwent a successful partial meniscectomy to address his right knee lateral meniscus tear. Dr. Riley Williams performed the procedure at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
Broome is set to be re-evaluated in four weeks.