50 points and a big wish
NBA superstar Embiid shines despite facial paralysis
April 26, 2024, 11:24 a.m
Joel Embiid is one of the best basketball players in the NBA. This season, however, he is struggling with health problems. First his knee forced him to take a longer break, and now he also suffers from a mild form of Bell’s palsy. It doesn’t affect him on the court.
Joel Embiid hid his eyes behind black sunglasses after his 50 points gala. Once again defying all odds, the Philadelphia 76ers basketball superstar revealed that it’s not “just” his bad knee that’s bothering him at the moment. No, the NBA MVP has also recently been suffering from a mild form of Bell’s palsy – or idiopathic facial palsy.
“I think it started a day or two before the Miami game (in the play-in tournament/ed.)and I had a bad migraine and thought it was nothing,” Embiid said after the 125-114 win in Game 3 of the Round of 16 series against the New York Knicks, in which he set a career-high 50 points for the playoffs And this despite the limitations that the nerve disease brings with it.
Bell’s palsy typically manifests itself as muscle weakness on one side of the face. “It’s pretty annoying, you know, with the left side of my face, my mouth and my eye. So yeah, it’s been tough,” said Embiid, who acknowledged that the paralysis partially affects his vision: “But I’m not giving up , so I have to keep fighting. But yes, it’s unfortunate. But that’s no excuse.
The 30-year-old added: “I just hope it stays that way. I have a beautiful face. I don’t like it when my mouth points the other way.” Embiid, who is with the Sixers trailing 2-1 in the series against the Knicks, has had a difficult season. After knee surgery in February, he was out for two months and only returned shortly before the play-offs. In the first game in New York, the center fell unhappily on his knee after a dunk.
According to Embiid, he still doesn’t have full confidence in his knee. “I’m just trying to keep pushing. Like I said, I’m not going to give up. Even on one leg, I’m going to keep trying. But no, that’s not an excuse. I just have to keep playing better and better and better. Tonight I had “I’m lucky. I hit a few shots.”