Washington Wizards: What to expect with Joel Embiid out for game five

Just when this series looked over, everything has been turned on its head. The Washington Wizards avoided the sweep, but lost Davis Bertans in the process. Now the 76ers are dealing with their own injury issues. Joel Embiid has officially been ruled out for game five. Embiid played only 11 minutes in game four and exited in the first quarter after taking a hard fall after challenging Robin Lopez at the rim. The Philadelphia 76ers had listed him as doubtful following game four, but now we know for sure that the Wizards will be battling an Embiid-less Philly team in game five. And maybe beyond.

Now day-to-day, Embiid has had an MVP-caliber season and has tormented the Wizards throughout. In three matchups during the regular season, Embiid averaged 30 points and 9.7 rebounds, and two blocks on 60 percent shooting from the field and 83 percent from three. Through the first three games of this series, he’d been nearly unstoppable, averaging 29.3 points and seven rebounds while shooting 67 percent from the field and 55 percent from three. Then, in the first quarter of game four, it looked like it would be another incredible game: eight points, six rebounds, two assists, and one steal in 11 minutes. Now the 76ers need to find a way to win without him.

Joel Embiid is out for game five between the Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers. Here’s what it means for both teams.

The 76ers aren’t unfamiliar with how to play without Embiid. He missed a total of 21 games during the course of the 2020-21 season. However, that doesn’t mean they’re particularly good at playing without Embiid. The 76ers went 10-11 in the games Embiid missed this season. Nearly half of their 23 losses this season came when Embiid was not playing.