Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid's knee injury is believed to be more serious than originally thought. Embiid is considered to have a right knee LCL sprain that is greater than a Grade 1 sprain. Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers said on Saturday that Embiid is doubtful to play in Game 1 against the Boston Celtics on Monday.

A Grade 1 LCL sprain has a possible recovery time of a few days to two weeks. A Grade 2 LCL sprain can take two to four weeks. A Grade 3 LCL sprain is in the range of four to six weeks. LCL sprains can be subject to reinjury of greater severity than the original injury.

It's unknown if Embiid is dealing with a Grade 2 or Grade 3 LCL sprain. By Monday, he'll have sat for 11 days, after missing the Sixers Game 4 victory in their first-round sweep of the Brooklyn Nets.

The Philadelphia 76ers know they have a tough task ahead of them against the Boston Celtics in the second round of the playoffs. But that task will be even tougher if Joel Embiid can't play due a sprained right knee.

Sixers coach Doc Rivers gave an update on Embiid's inactivity at Saturday's practice before casting doubt on the potential MVP's availability for Game 1 on Monday.

"There is no latest," Rivers said. "Obviously, the doctors looked at him, and he didn't do anything today.

"I'll say this, but if I was a betting man, I would probably say doubtful for at least Game 1. But we'll see."

Embiid missed Game 4 of the 76ers sweep of the Brooklyn Nets in the first round. That would give him 11 days off before facing the Celtics in Game 1. However, recovery times from a sprained LCL can vary greatly, and the Sixers haven't said what grade of sprain Embiid is dealing with.

The Philadelphia 76ers remain unsure of whether Joel Embiid will be ready for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals as he recovers from a sprained knee.

"I'm just going to wait. They'll call me later and we'll see where he's at," said Doc Rivers on Thursday.

Rivers did admit that the Celtics-Hawks series going six games improved Embiid's chances of playing in Game 1.

"If we played on Saturday, I don't know how realistic it would have been, so that's a good thing," added Rivers.

Embiid is averaging 36.8 points and 11.8 rebounds against the Celtics this season. 

Joel Embiid suffered a sprained LCL in his right knee in Game 4.

When Embiid suffered the injury, the Philadelphia 76ers were expecting a one- to two-week recovery.

The second round could start as early as Saturday, April 29th.

Embiid is "moving around better" and the swelling has subsided, but it remains to be seen if he will be available for Game 1.

Joel Embiid sustained a right knee sprain in the Philadelphia 76ers' Game 3 win over the Brooklyn Nets and will miss Game 4 on Saturday.

Embiid returned to Philadelphia on Friday to undergo an MRI on the knee. Embiid could return as early as next week, possibly for Game 5.

Embiid injured the knee contesting a third-quarter drive by the Nets' Cam Johnson on Thursday.

There continues to be dialogue in the media linking James Harden with a potential return to the Houston Rockets this offseason. The Rockets will have max cap space and Harden has interest in a return to the franchise he played for between 2012 and 2021.

How the Philadelphia 76ers fare in the playoffs could go a long ways in determining what happens with Harden.

"James Harden's future is very unclear in Philadelphia," said Adrian Wojnarowski on his podcast. "Houston is very much in play for him. And I think a lot may depend on [whether] they make a run and win and it's easy to pay him long-term big money, or he just wants to be in Houston. Win or lose he goes, or it's dependent on the team's success."

Harden re-signed with the Sixers last offseason on a two-year, $68.6 million deal.

The Sacramento King's Game 2 win over the Golden State Warriors on Monday night averaged 4.32 million viewers on TNT. 

The number represents a 34% increase from last year's Nuggets-Warriors series. Saturday's Game 1 matchup was a 38% increase from the previous year.

Game 2 of the Nets-Sixers on Monday's early slot averaged 3.0 million viewers, up 10% from the Raptors-Sixers last year. 

The city of Philadelphia announced an "independent and comprehensive evaluation" of the Philadelphia 76ers' proposed $1.3 billion arena on Wednesday.

The arena, proposed to be built next to the city's Chinatown, has drawn opposition from Chinatown leaders and residents.

Mayor Jim Kearney said that while the proposal was exciting, the city must understand the impact it would potentially have on surrounding communities.

The city, along with public agency partners and third-party consultants, will complete a technical study assessing "building design, community impact and urban planning, economic impact and parking/traffic impact."

Neeta Patel, interim executive director of Asian Americans United, said that data on downtown arena projects "provide little to no benefit for cities while funneling profits to their rich developers."

The arena is currently scheduled to open in 2031 should the proposal be approved. 

Joel Embiid may have sewn up the MVP award in a dominating performance, as he led the Philadelphia 76ers to victory over the Boston Celtics. Embiid scored 52 points on 20-of-25 shooting, grabbed 13 rebounds, dished out six assists and blocked two shots in the Sixers 103-101 victory.

In the eyes of his coach, that should have been enough for Embiid to wrap up the MVP award.

"There were so many things that we did wrong. But what we did right was Joel Embiid. The MVP race is over. Tonight, we couldn’t make shots. The man just scored half our points in an NBA game," Doc Rivers said. "And I’m biased but the MVP race is over."

Embiid was leading the tightly contested three-way MVP race as of the latest, and final, straw poll conducted by ESPN. The Sixers center led Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo atop tentative awards ballots, which don't need to be finalized until the completion of the regular season.