Report: Joel Embiid enters health and safety protocols

Philadelphia 76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid has been placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania. Embiid, who is 14/1 to win NBA MVP this season, is expected to miss several games, per Charania.

The Sixers have already missed SF Tobias Harris for the past four games while he was placed in Covid-19 protocols. Sixers staff has received Covid-19 booster shots while players were going to begin receiving them this week, per Shams. Now, Embiid will miss likely up to 10 days on top of added rest; Embiid was going to sit Monday night vs. the Knicks.

This is a tough break for the first-place Sixers, who are 8-2 at the top of the Eastern Conference entering Monday. The team will be without Harris after he tested positive for Covid-19. Harris and Embiid will be out while Ben Simmons’ situation continues to be murky. All three All-Stars won’t be in the lineup for Philly, plus Matisse Thybulle (Covid) and Danny Green (hamstring) could both be sidelined vs. New York as well.

This impacts the NBA MVP race a bit with Embiid missing more games. The more time Embiid sits, the less of a chance he has at winning MVP despite being one of the front-runners. You’d think if the Sixers were missing Simmons and Harris, plus role players, for an extended period and maintained a top record, Embiid would be among the finalists for MVP again. That seems less likely now, unless Embiid can rebound and play around 70 games while the Sixers finish at the top of the conference.