Basketball <\/p>\n
Despite expressing a desire to play, Joel Embiid was a DNP when the Philadelphia 76ers faced the Washington Wizards on Wednesday. Embiid missing a game here and there is already standard, but this time in particular, it\u2019s sparked controversy.<\/p>\n
The Sixers center has spoken up about it already, and he\u2019s put Sixers president Daryl Morey on the spot with his statement.<\/p>\n
Embiid was back in the Sixers\u2019 rotation after missing 13 straight games from March 1 through 23. He played in his team\u2019s next three games but was once again sidelined against the Wizards on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The Sixers star himself appeared stunned by the decision, as evidenced by his post<\/a> on X (formerly Twitter). Morey later explained that the reasoning behind this latest DNP was that Embiid felt too sick<\/a> to attend the team\u2019s film session ahead of the game.<\/p>\n Aside from his earlier social media post, the Cameroonian center also answered media questions about the situation.<\/p>\n \u201cI was pissed off. I wanted to play basketball,\u201d Embiid said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t allowed to play basketball, so I think this is more of a question for Daryl Morey and whoever makes the decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n He also explained that he was indeed feeling ill, but not to the extent that he could not play. \u201cI think going into Miami, I was pretty sick, but I understood how important the game was, and I still wanted to give us a chance to go out and try to do something.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c[I] felt a bit better going into Washington. Definitely much better than I felt against Miami,\u201d he added. \u201cI woke up, didn\u2019t sleep until five or six in the morning. With that, couldn\u2019t make it to shootaround. After that, I found out online that I wasn\u2019t playing.\u201d<\/p>\n Joel Embiid was asked about why he didn\u2019t play against Washington on Wednesday. He did not hold back.<\/p>\n \u201cI was pissed off. I wanted to play basketball. I wasn\u2019t allowed to play basketball. I think this is more of a question for Daryl Morey.\u201d<\/p>\n Full answer \ud83d\udc47 pic.twitter.com\/klleKW9NUy<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 PHLY Sixers (@PHLY_Sixers) April 4, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Head coach Nick Nurse has also made a statement<\/a> to clarify the situation. He reiterated that Embiid did, in fact, fail to report to the film session ahead of Wednesday\u2019s game. The team wanted him to see a doctor, and they had decided to sit him out against the Wizards.<\/p>\n\n