Joel Embiid Says He'll Need to Play More vs. Raptors as He Battles Knee Injury

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid said Saturday that he needs to increase his workload during the Sixers' second-round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors.

Embiid is nursing tendinitis in his left knee, but according to ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin, he knows the 76ers will need him more against the second-seeded team in the Eastern Conference:

"It's still not there. It's still trying to get better. But that's an issue that's going to be there at least all playoffs until I actually get some real time to get some rest and work on myself. ...

"But, we did a good job managing it. Obviously I only averaged about 24 minutes last series, so this one I'm definitely going to need way more than that."

In the Sixers' 4-1 series win over the Brooklyn Nets in the first round, Embiid played just 24.3 minutes per game and missed one contest, although he averaged 24.8 points, 13.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.8 blocks in the games he played.

Joel Embiid Highlight Reel

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Embiid missed 14 of the Sixers' 24 games after the All-Star Game with the ailment, but he still appeared in a career-high 64 games during the regular season.

The two-time All-Star acknowledged Saturday that managing the pain has been a struggle at times: "It's hard because I'm known for playing through anything and pushing, pushing it. And in some situations like Game 3, I couldn't go because it was too much. But like I said, I just got to keep managing it and see how I feel and then go from there."

Even with Embiid playing limited minutes against Brooklyn, the Sixers advanced in five games because of their stacked lineup, which also includes Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler, Tobias Harris and J.J. Redick.

Things may not come so easily against a Toronto team led by Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry and Pascal Siakam. The Raptors also have a pair of quality centers in Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol, which makes Embiid an even more valuable commodity in the second round.

If Embiid's bothersome knee limits him again during the series, it will likely mean additional playing time for Boban Marjanovic and Greg Monroe.

The Sixers and Raptors will play Game 1 of their series in Toronto on Saturday night, and the winner of the series will go on to face either the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.