Joel Embiid Travels with 76ers After Post Requesting Not to Be 'F--King Babied'

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid is traveling with the team to Miami ahead of Thursday's Game 3 matchup against the Heat, according to John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia:

Embiid, who has missed the team's past 10 games with a left orbital fracture, has been frustrated by not being on the court. In a since-deleted Instagram post after Monday night's loss to the Heat, Embiid wrote, "f--cking sick and tired of being babied" (h/t Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com).  

"I promised the city the playoffs and I'm not on the court and I may not be on Thursday either," Embiid said after the Instagram post, per Ramona Shelburne of ESPN. "I wish more than anything that I was out there. I just want the green light to play."

It remains unclear if Embiid will be available for Game 3 on Thursday, though the fact that he's traveling with the team is a promising sign that the star center will be back by Game 4 at the latest.

Head coach Brett Brown, meanwhile, said that Embiid is progressing nicely from the injury and that there has been a "very unified effort" from Embiid, his representatives and the team's medical staff in his recovery process, per Ian Begley of ESPN.com. But Brown added that he understands the player's frustrations. 

"He just wants to play basketball," Brown said Monday. "He wants to be with his team. He wants to play in front of the fans, and he wants to see this through. And when he's not able to do that, he gets frustrated, and we respect his frustration. It's borne out of competitiveness."

While the Sixers were without Embiid for much of their 17-game winning streak, including a Game 1 win over the Heat, Embiid's absence was felt in the Game 2 loss. The center averaged 22.9 points, 11.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, leading the team in scoring while anchoring the defense. 

So impactful is Embiid on the defensive end that he's one of the frontrunners for this season's Defensive Player of the Year award, alongside Utah's Rudy Gobert. 

Without question, the Sixers need their top player back in action. That may not happen Thursday, but it seems clear at this point that Embiid will make his return in Miami.