We already knew Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers were taking a longer view in terms of his load management this season. We’re seeing it in practice with the news that the big man won’t be playing in any preseason games this fall.
Depending on how you view life in general, you can read different things into this approach. The optimist might think, “Oh, good, they’re finally being serious about maximizing his chances of being healthy and available in April, May, and June.” Whereas the pessimist could say, “It’s October and Embiid hasn’t played a game and he’s already visiting doctors to updates on his knee.