NBA players have clearly been taking the 2025 off-season even more seriously than usual, and it has produced insane results.
Joel Embiid is the latest NBA star to have undergone a visible body transformation this summer, joining New Orleans Pelicans star center Zion Williamson, who has dramatically dropped the pounds and looks to be in the best shape of his professional career.
As well as Williamson, Embiid also joins Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic, who has seemingly gone all out on his health to prove his doubters in the Dallas Mavericks organization wrong after they labelled his weight as a key factor in their decision to move on and trade their former franchise icon.
Embiid has been putting in the work
The Philadelphia 76ers center was seen in promotional photos posted by the social media team as they revealed the release of their iconic 2001 black jerseys worn by the likes of Allen Iverson when they made the NBA Finals, looking notably slimmed down and much leaner.
Sixers reporter John Clark, of NBC, took to X (formerly Twitter) where he wrote: “Back in black! The Sixers are bringing back the jerseys from the 2001 AI Sixers team that went to the NBA Finals.
“The Sixers are celebrating the 25th anniversary of that team. The new uniforms will debut November 8. Joel Embiid looking slimmer!”
Clark wasn’t the only one to recognise Embiid’s leaner stature, with Sixers fans being sent into a social media frenzy when the first glimpses since he was ruled out of the 2024-25 NBA season with injury were released.
“With every picture of skinny Embiid I see, my heart grows 3 sizes. I am so in it hurts,” one fan wrote on X.
“Not only does Joel Embiid look great physically, he took a lot of weight off his shoulders mentally… We are going to see a different Joel Embiid going forward this season,” another fan wrote.
“It’s the smiles for me. He finally looks at peace. Scary for the rest of the league if he’s at peace and ready to go!,” a third echoed.
The hosts of the Sixers Talk podcast by NBC Sports Philadelphia were also gushing over Embiid’s body transformation, as well as noting that the Cameroon native was sans his knee brace.
“The internet kind of erupted when we got the photos from who is trickling into the Sixers practice facility and training camp and Joel Slim-biid, some people are calling him, because the big fella seems to have shed a few pounds,” Danny Pommells said.
Embiid sports a much-leaner look ahead of Sixers training campX/ @sixers Embiid has missed considerable time since his MVP-winning season in 2023Getty“He looks in better shape. The photos the Sixers released on their Instagram that I saw, I didn’t see a brace on his knee. I didn’t see anything holding him back.”
When asked by Pommells about what he thought about Embiid’s new look, co-host Noah Levick was conservative in his response, highlighting how the narrative over the 76ers star hasn’t really shifted over the course of his career.
“Definitely better than the alternative of Joel Embiid not being out there and not looking in really excellent shape,” Levick added.
“I do think, though, perhaps there’s still this lingering perception of Embiid as someone who’s carrying too much weight consistently and my sense is that hasn’t really been the case for, gosh, four or five or six years now.”
Amy Fadool also weighed in on her initial thoughts on what she thought of Embiid from the training camp workout photos dropped on social media: “I think the first thing I noticed was, certainly the lack of a knee brace, especially how we saw last season play out, and really the whole season, including the offseason last year,”
“But it’s a good sign that there’s some positive momentum going the way, I will not use the four-letter word ramp. I will not say it. I’m not going to even think it anymore. I’m tired of that word, they use it too much. No one likes it. But it is positive momentum going forward.”
Pressure is on the Sixers to reach the playoffs
Philadelphia has been ‘trusting the process’ for almost a decade now.
Having drafted Embiid with the third overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft, the Sixers had to wait two seasons for him to make his debut due to injury.
While the 7-footer has always been a huge presence to the team on the hardwood, his health and availability has been a major concern, missing a lot of time in his first three years in the league.
Although he found some consistency between 2017-2023, in the last two campaigns Embiid has featured just 58 times due to injury, 19 of which came last season as he suffered significant damage to his left knee just months after he penned a three-year, $193 million extension with the team.
After playing just 19 games last season due to a lingering knee injury, Embiid looks to bounce back with a much slender frameIG/ @sixers If they all stay healthy, the Sixers could be a dominant force in the Eastern Conference this seasonGettyIn his lengthy absence, the Sixers, who also saw their star free agent acquisition Paul George regularly sidelined with injury, finished the season with a lowly 24-58 record – their worst finish since they won only 10 games in 2016.
Earlier this summer, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse spoke exclusively to talkSPORT’s Brian T. Smith, where he detailed that Embiid had been working hard in his rehabilitation, although he couldn’t guarantee with certainty that he would be available right away at training camp.
“All the news is positive,” Nurse said about the five-time All-NBA selection. “I know he’s working very, very hard and I think things look good…But our main thing is that he’s healthy to play and play to his nearest capabilities, because he’s awesome, no doubt about that.”
But, with just days away from training camp beginning, all signs point in the direction of Embiid – and George – being healthy, which has fans excited.
“Joel Embiid playing fives, three days before camp starts, well, that seems like it should be a great sign to Philadelphia 76ers fans,” one user said on X.
With a big three of Embiid, George and rising star Tyrese Maxey – providing they all remain healthy – could yet inflict some serious damage in a weakened Eastern Conference that has several stars, including the Boston Celtics‘ Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers, ruled out with long-term injuries.
That is a big if, though.
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