{"id":125576,"date":"2025-02-25T08:41:34","date_gmt":"2025-02-25T13:41:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=125576"},"modified":"2025-02-25T08:41:34","modified_gmt":"2025-02-25T13:41:34","slug":"can-joel-embiid-avoid-radical-surgery-demarcus-cousins-advice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/02\/25\/can-joel-embiid-avoid-radical-surgery-demarcus-cousins-advice\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Joel Embiid Avoid Radical Surgery With Former Star’s Advice?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid<\/a> won’t be suiting up for the foreseeable future, with several doctors trying to figure out the best treatment for his ailing knee<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It’s a complex situation that has led to varied opinions with a thread of logic connecting them all. Though the recovery of Embiid’s meniscus has been impeded by several factors –namely conditioning, other injuries, and common obstacles– surgery isn’t the most likely option. However, if Embiid does undergo another procedure, he could take a “radical” route.<\/p>\n

Sixers’ Joel Embiid Considering ‘Radical’ Surgery<\/h2>\n

According to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Marcus Hayes, the former league MVP’s options<\/a> include “meniscus replacement,” “low-dose radiation therapy,” and “osteotomy, in which doctors break a bone in the hip to realign the joint to alleviate pressure.” Out of those options, low-dose radiation therapy might have the least severe side effects. In fact, a 2022 study published by the National Library of Medicine describes the procedure<\/a> as a “noninvasive treatment with minimal side effects.”<\/p>\n

With that being said, perhaps Embiid can avoid an offseason operation with advice from another center<\/a> whose career was impeded by injuries: former NBA star DeMarcus Cousins<\/a>.<\/p>\n

DeMarcus Cousins’s Weight Advice<\/h3>\n

“For me, it\u2019s the weight,” Cousins says on Run It Back<\/em>. “You\u2019re at the point now in your career where your weight matters. You\u2019ve been through injuries, you\u2019ve been through surgeries. Obviously, it\u2019s still a nagging issue. So now, it\u2019s about holding yourself accountable\u2014go lose 40 pounds.”<\/p>\n

“Obviously, your body can\u2019t sustain that type of weight. The wear and tear, the constant pounding on your knees night after night\u2014it\u2019s not going to help your situation. Go lose 40… Being at that size and weight\u2014 in the league today\u2014it doesn\u2019t really help you. You don\u2019t have to go out there and be this huge, physical guy anymore. This is a rail-thin league. It\u2019s about moving up and down, side to side. It\u2019s not about physicality and bruising.”<\/p>\n

“So, go lose 40,” he reiterates. “I think he still remains a dominant player. He\u2019s more of a finesse, jump-shooting big at this point in his career. Losing that 40 helps\u2014it improves his quickness, his explosion, and his ability to get up and down the court.”<\/p>\n

Cousins then cites former San Antonio Spurs center Tim Duncan<\/a> as an example. Halfway through the 2008-09 season, Duncan was diagnosed with right quad tendonitis<\/a>, which was leading to stiffness in his knee. Eventually, the future Hall of Famer’s knee issues became so significant he was in the midst of a steep decline.<\/p>\n

Then, in the 2011 offseason, he decided to lose weight. By 2013, he was down from 260 pounds to 235 pounds.<\/p>\n

\n

RT @danmccarneysaen<\/a>: Finally got a specific number out of Tim Duncan: Says he’s lost 30 pounds from his peak weight of 265<\/p>\n

\u2014 Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) May 30, 2013<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n