Joel Embiid showed up to Philadelphia 76ers training camp on Tuesday morning suited up and practicing, and that alone marked a welcome change from the uncertainty that has hovered over the start of recent seasons.
After the first session, head coach Nick Nurse gave fans the kind of update they had been waiting to hear. His two-word assessment: “Full participant.”
Nurse said Embiid “looked great” in camp and called it “Very, very good news from the standpoint of where it's been for the last couple of years. The last couple of summers leading into today.
He looked great. Full participant all the way through,” the head coach explained
That’s a meaningful checkpoint for a player whose knee issues have repeatedly interrupted any momentum. The source of the frustration is clear: whenever Embiid seemed close to getting back to form, swelling or discomfort knocked him back out of action.
The last two seasons were especially rough. After appearing in 39 games in 2023-2024, Embiid hoped to ease into a healthier 2024-2025 campaign.
Instead, he didn’t make his debut until after nine games, then played four before another seven-game absence followed. More stops and starts came after that, and he ultimately needed another surgery.
He finished that season with just 19 games played.
There was at least some improvement in 2025-2026, especially with the knee. Other issues kept him from reaching 40 games for the first time since 2022-2023, but the knee was no longer the problem by the end of the year. That’s still the case as the Sixers begin the new season.
Even with the encouraging camp report, the team isn’t treating this as a reason to go overboard. Nurse and the Sixers know too well that health updates around Embiid can change fast. The plan is to manage his workload through the preseason and then into the regular season, and the organization is keeping expectations in check.
For now, though, Philadelphia has at least cleared one important hurdle: Embiid was there, he practiced, and Nurse said he was a full participant. After the way the last couple of summers have gone, that’s news Sixers fans will absolutely take.
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