Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid played for the first time since he was shut down by the franchise in February. Fans are looking forward to a better campaign for Embiid, especially after his performance last season. The big man was limited to just 19 games due to his nagging knee issues. He did not finish the entire season and was shut down to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.
On Wednesday, he made his first NBA appearance. Although he played in some of the 76ers’ preseason games, the team’s bout against the Boston Celtics made Embiid’s appearance official.
The Sixers have a high ceiling this year after missing the 2025 playoffs. Against an old rival, Embiid underperformed in his first regular-season game. He finished with four points in just 20 minutes of action. Understandably, he’d need time to get adjusted to the pace of the NBA after months of not being part of the action. But his outing was disappointing, as he shot 11.1% on the floor.
After the team’s season opener against the Celtics, fans expressed their disappointment with Joel Embiid’s performance.
“He should retire. Mfer doesn’t like playing but loves his paycheck,” a fan said.
“Ain’t trusting that process anymore,” another fan commented.
“Joel embiid looking ready for a podcast 💔” a fan pointed out.
Joel embiid looking ready for a podcast 💔 pic.twitter.com/kIgGD98FIV
— NoFu⚜ (@MansandNem) October 23, 2025
“Look like he can barely walk , more holes in tights then points,” someone commented.
“He may be done. Like his days of making all star teams and all nba teams are over,” a comment read.
“Time to hang it up and get a 9-5 big guy,” a fan commented.
Time to hang it up and get a 9-5 big guy
— JayTakes (@SportsWithJay0) October 23, 2025
Fortunately for the 76ers, they managed to have a 117-116 victory over the Celtics. All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey had 40 points and No. 3 pick of the 2025 draft, V.J. Edgecombe, helped the team with 34 points.
Shaquille O’Neal doesn’t think Joel Embiid is among the top big men in the NBA anymore
There’s a lot of expectation for Joel Embiid to be one of the best players in the league. But his injuries have prevented him from making sizeable contributions to the 76ers. In the recent episode of “The Big Podcast,” former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal called out the seven-time All-Star.
According to O’Neal, the Cameroonian center is no longer one of the best big men in the league. He was in significant competition with Nikola Jokic to be crowned the best before the injury. Now, he’s not the same player anymore, and Shaq wants to motivate him to do better.
“He’s just been unconsidered for NBA top big man,” O’Neal said. “He’s out the list now, and you can tell him I said it.
“It’s disappointing and I hope he hears this and gets mad and I hope he dominates. But that hasn’t been the case… I’m just trying to motivate.”
For other sports-related content:
Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at reignamuraonba@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
