Joel Embiid available Monday vs. Suns with illness

Monday update: After missing three games with an illness, Embiid is back in for the 76ers. He’s a bonafide fantasy/DFS star, especially with James Harden out. The 76ers should also get a boost on the lines, although they were likely accounting for Embiid’s return already.

Sunday update: Embiid remains questionable with an illness that has caused him to miss three straight games. The 76ers are without James Harden and badly need their star center to get back on the floor.

Friday update: Embiid will miss his third straight game with the illness he’s experiencing. The 76ers are also down James Harden for the next month, so it’ll be up to Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris to spearhead this ship until the big man comes back.

Thursday update: Embiid is once again being listed as questionable for Friday’s game against the Knicks. The big man has missed the team’s last two games but he’ll likely need to get back to the court soon with James Harden out for a month. Embiid holds the key to Philadelphia’s title chances and he’ll hope to return to the floor Friday.

Wednesday update: Embiid is once again going to be out for Wednesday’s game. Montrezl Harrell and Paul Reed likely get into the DFS value play conversation now, while James Harden should command most of the touches offensively once again. Tyrese Maxey had a big game Monday so he could also be a factor here.

Tuesday update: Embiid is being listed as questionable for Wednesday’s game against the Wizards. He missed Monday’s contest due to this illness.

Monday update: Embiid has been ruled out for Monday’s game vs. the Wizards due to an illness. With Embiid sidelined, this should move the betting lines a bit. The Sixers are still favored by 2.5 points on DraftKings Sportsbook. Philly has been OK this season when Embiid isn’t in the lineup. Tyrese Maxey and James Harden should carry the offense. Montrezl Harrell is a candidate to see more minutes in the front court with Embiid out.

Sunday update: Embiid is questionable Monday against Washington but it’s due to an illness, not injury management.

Saturday update: Embiid is not on the injury report for Saturday’s game against the Bulls, so it looks like this is more of a load management situation than an actual injury.

The Philadelphia 76ers have ruled star center Joel Embiid out of Friday’s game against the Toronto Raptors with an undisclosed injury. Embiid has had several ailments in his NBA career, so it’s not exactly a surprise that he’s sitting out.

The term the Sixers are using is “injury recovery”, so we know Embiid has to have some kind of actual ailment. This isn’t a rest day for the big man, who had his best season last year and comes into this campaign as one of the MVP contenders. This is a tough break for the 76ers early in the season, as they’ve started 1-4 out of the gate and now have to play a team that just beat them without their star.

Look for Paul Reed and Montrezl Harrell to be the primary centers for Philadelphia in Friday’s contest. It’s hard to see either having much fantasy/DFS value given they’re likely to split time and not command the ball as much as Embiid would have.