Having struggled with injuries for the majority of the last campaign, speculation regarding Joel Embiid‘s future in the NBA has only picked up pace ahead of the 2025-26 season. With the center yet to confirm his availability for the start of the upcoming season, a Philadelphia 76ers insider has shared his assessment of Embiid’s basketball career, stating that the former MVP could be on the cusp of hanging up his boots.
Philadelphia 76ers insider claims Joel Embiid knows he’s in the twilight of his NBA career
In a recent interview with Sirius XM, Philadelphia Inquirer’s Keith Pompey remarked that Joel Embiid could be nearing the end of his turbulent, injury-riddled NBA career.
“I think Joel may know that the end is near,” the renowned sports journalist noted. He then added, “Rarely do you have a guy tell you how much pain and how much they’re going through… I feel like Joel Embiid knows that, it may not be this season, but the end is near. And maybe he feels as though he can’t play at the level that he used to.” Pompey did admit that he could be wrong, and the 31-year-old Sixers center “could come out and have another MVP season.”
Pompey’s comments come after Embiid opened up about his injury struggles in the NBA over the years. Speaking to The Athletic’s Derek Bodner, Embiid revealed in February 2025, “The way I was playing a year ago, it’s not the way I’m playing right now. It sucks. But I believe … I probably need to fix the problem, and then I’ll be back at that level, but it’s hard to have trust when you’re not yourself.” “It’s tough. You know you can do so much more.”
Notably, Embiid had to skip a whopping 63 games due to fitness issues in the 2024-25 NBA season, resulting in the Sixers finishing last season’s campaign with a disappointing record of 24-58. Having made his professional debut in 2014, Embiid has made just 446 appearances in the league so far, with injuries forcing him to miss out on 400 games.
