Top NBA insider lays out Joel Embiid's return timeline amidst Philadelphia 76ers' free fall in his absence

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has been out since Feb. 2 due to an injury. Embiid suffered a knee injury that required surgery. Since then, he hasn't been re-evaluated, as the team will have to wait four weeks to assess his condition.

Since his absence, the Sixers (33-24) have fallen to fifth place in the Eastern Conference. His bid to win the regular season MVP has also been ruled out. Embiid has already missed more than 17 games this season, which puts him over the 65-game limit to qualify for any in-season awards.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski has given an update on Embiid's status. According to him, there's hope that the big man will likely return before the postseason starts.

"They still are optimistic that they can get him back," Wojnarowski said. "I think there's some hope that they can get him back on the court by sometime in late March.

"The goal here isn't necessarily to try to bring him back and see how many regular season games you might be able to win with him. The goal is to get him as healthy as he can be for the postseason."

Wojnarowski shared that there's a chance Embiid might be back to a team that has fallen to the Play-In position. That could be bad news for the All-Star, as it would mean he'll play a game with playoff intensity before the postseason.

The NBA insider also shared that it will take one more week until the star will be evaluated and given a timeline for his return. Embiid has played 34 games, averaging 35.3 points, 11.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists.

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Philly's championship hopes were gone after Joel Embiid's injury according to former Sixer

Fans were disappointed to see Joel Embiid injured again. He was taking over the league and many thought he'd also win his second MVP award. However, Embiid's injury has diminished the hopes of the Sixers fans. According to Patrick Beverley, the team's championship chances were gone after the big man's injury.

"After Joel went down, that kinda changed the look and makeup of the team not knowing if he’s coming back all," Beverley said.

There's still hope for the Sixers to contend for a title this season. However, it will be more challenging for the team to be a threat against teams in the East. Other teams have performed far better than Philly.

But there's still hope for them as they made a few changes in their roster, giving Embiid more help than ever.