Sports
Joel Embiid — battling Bell's palsy — turns in his finest playoff performance yet
PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid walked off the podium and into the array of hallways of the Wells Fargo Center late Thursday evening wearing dark black sunglasses across his face. He had worn them for most of the night after the Philadelphia 76ers preserved their season with a grueling Game 3 win over the New York Knicks; in the locker room as he iced his leg and in a news conference in front of reporters and cameras.
Over the last week-and-a-half, Embiid has had Bell’s palsy, which has weakened the muscles on the left side of his face. It began with heavy migraines last week, just a day or so before the 76ers beat the Miami Heat in a Play-In Tournament game to notch the No. 7 seed. It has lingered, leaving his mouth drooped, and his eye dry, blurry and in constant need of drops.
The condition has been a nuisance, he said, but not a deterrent. This season has tested Embiid in many ways. He has seen an NBA All-Star teammate demand out, and a torn left meniscus erase two months from what had been an MVP-level campaign. The 76ers have had to preserve their season and win just to get into the postseason. Their hopes, and their safe passage, have always depended on Embiid.
They did again Thursday in a resounding Game 3 win, when Embiid turned in his finest playoff performance yet. Hampered by the still balky knee, and now bothered by this recent illness, he dropped 50 points on the Knicks in a 125-114 win that pulled Philadelphia to 2-1 in their first-round series.
Embiid was dominant and efficient. He made 13 of 19 shots and took 21 free throws. He catalyzed the 76ers during a 43-point third quarter when they erased a halftime deficit and took control of the game. When the 76ers’ season seemed to teeter, just one loss away from an-all-but-over series, Embiid stepped to the forefront one more time.
He did it, of course, in his own way. He nearly lost control in the first quarter and was almost ejected — arguably should have been — when he followed up an offensive foul with a Flagrant 1 a few possessions later. As he lay on the ground, Embiid pulled down opposing center Mitchell Robinson, who was leaping above him for a dunk. The play incensed the Knicks; Donte DiVincenzo called it “dirty.” But it served as a rebuke and nothing more for Embiid. Instead, he overpowered the Knicks the rest of the night.
Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points, Cameron Payne came off the bench for 11, and the Sixers drained 48.4 percent of their 31 3s. Yet, it was Embiid who carried them once again.
He outgunned Jalen Brunson, who finally broke out of his two-game slump. Brunson scored 39 points and dished out 13 assists after missing 39 of his first 55 shots this series and it still was not enough. Not when Embiid tormented the Knicks inside and out. Embiid hit five 3s and drew seven shooting fouls. The Knicks rolled out one big after another trying to stop him but couldn’t. Isaiah Hartenstein had five fouls, Robinson played just 12 minutes because of an ankle injury that forced him to miss the second half and still had three fouls.
“I got lucky,” Embiid said. “I made a few shots. But gotta keep taking them, press on that. Gotta keep trusting myself. Especially because the physical abilities are somewhat limited.”
Embiid had been slowed earlier in the series by his left knee, which he reaggravated in Game 1. He had missed 30 games with a torn left meniscus after surgery in February, and hurt it once more. Thursday, however, he seemed to be spry again. But the constant run of injuries and afflictions has worn on Embiid. He revealed his frustration as he explained his new bout of Bell’s palsy. It has, at times, forced him to ask himself why he has been such a magnet for bad luck.
“I say it every day,” he said. “It is unfortunate. Every single year you start asking yourself questions like ‘Why?’ Every single year. It’s very annoying. Maybe it’s just meant to be. You gotta just take it as it is. The one thing I’m not going to do is give up. No matter what happens. Gotta keep pushing, gotta keep fighting, gotta keep putting my body on the line.”
He has done that repeatedly. At 7-feet, 280 pounds, he has inflicted pain and been treated for it after a slew of injuries. They have left an imprint on him.
Thursday, it nearly caused him to get tossed out of the game. Embiid grabbed Robinson, he said, because he was worried about getting hurt one more time. He had injured his left knee after Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga fell on it this January. That image, Embiid said, ran through his mind as he saw Robinson standing atop him in the first quarter. It put Robinson in danger, though officials deemed it was not worthy of a Flagrant 2.
“I kind of had some flashbacks when he came down to it,” Embiid said, rationalizing himself. “It’s unfortunate. I didn’t mean to hurt anybody. In those situations, I gotta protect myself because I’ve been in way too many situations where I’m the recipient of the bad end of it. It was unfortunate. But physical game. They want to bring their physicality. We can be physical, too, and we are. It goes both ways. I get bumped all over the place and I just keep playing. I can take it. I gotta keep my mind and make sure that I don’t get outside myself. I just gotta keep being myself, aggressive and physical.”
GO DEEPER
Joel Embiid’s ‘dirty’ flagrant foul on Mitchell Robinson is Game 3’s turning point
It was nearly the play that swung the game and the series. The Sixers might have been sunk without him and looking at one more early playoff exit. Instead, they’ll get to play Game 4 Sunday with a chance to tie up their series with the Knicks.
Embiid had predicted this late Monday night after a disastrous end to Game 2. It was a prediction uttered with the kind of confidence that comes with an MVP award and a place as one of the league’s best players. The Sixers, he said, should have been up 2-o in the series. The Sixers, he said, will win it anyway.
Predictions are easy. Thursday, Embiid backed it up. He became just the third player in Sixers history to score at least 50 points in a playoff game, and the first ever in NBA history to do it on fewer than 20 shots. Embiid hammered the Knicks with post ups and drives to the rim. He barreled in off screens and fired away from deep.
The 76ers followed suit. They took advantage of a physical game that occasionally grew chippy, if not more. After bemoaning the officials in Game 2, they committed seven fewer fouls than the Knicks and took 14 more free throws. The third-quarter surge served as a difference-maker and Philadelphia withstood New York in the fourth.
Now, it is a series again and the Sixers have regained their swagger. Embiid never lost his.
(Photo of Embiid: Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images)
Sports
Austin Reaves nearing return for Lakers as Luka Doncic remains out indefinitely with hamstring strain: report
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In early April, with just five games remaining in the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers announced that star guard Luka Doncic would be sidelined at least until the NBA playoffs.
Doncic’s setback was a Grade 2 left hamstring strain, an MRI confirmed. The reigning NBA scoring champion sustained the injury during an April 2 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers also entered the playoffs without another key member of their backcourt, Austin Reaves.
The shorthanded Lakers upset the Houston Rockets in the opening game of their first-round Western Conference series Saturday. Ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday, the Lakers reportedly received a clearer update on the health of at least one of their injured stars.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves brings the ball up court against the Washington Wizards in Los Angeles on March 30, 2026. (Ryan Sun/AP)
Reaves, who was diagnosed with an oblique strain, appears to be progressing toward a return later in the first-round series if it extends to six or seven games. If the Lakers advance sooner, he could be on track to return for the Western Conference semifinals.
According to ESPN, Reaves recently returned to the practice court for 1-on-1 drills. The 27-year-old will still need to progress to 2-on-3 and then 5-on-5 work before he can be cleared for playoff action, but he appears significantly further along than Doncic, who remains out indefinitely.
Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers controls the ball against the Orlando Magic at the Kia Center on March 21, 2026. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/Imagn Images)
Doncic is unlikely to play in the first round, regardless of the series length. ESPN footage showed him on the practice court on Tuesday, though the six-time All-Star was not doing high-intensity work.
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The Rockets, despite being widely favored in the opening round playoffs series, also contended with key injuries. Kevin Durant missed Game 1 with a knee contusion. He was cleared to play in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. shoots the ball against the Lakers during Game 1 in the NBA playoffs at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on April 18, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
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LeBron James scored 19 points, while Luke Kennard led Los Angeles with 27 in Saturday’s win.
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Watching junior right-hander Fabian Bravo of Sun Valley Poly High pitch for the first time, there was something strangely familiar about his windup.
When he turned his back to reveal he was wearing No. 32, everything made sense.
He had to be a fan of Sandy Koufax, the 1960s Hall of Fame left-hander for the Dodgers.
Two friends sitting next to me refused to believe it.
“No way,” one said.
“Kids today have never heard of Sandy Koufax,” another piped in.
Only after Bravo threw a three-hit shutout to beat North Hollywood 3-0 was my belief vindicated.
“I come into the back with my arms and it’s a little bit like a Sandy Koufax kind of thing,” he said. “I wear 32 too. He was the starting pitcher for the Dodgers and was good in the World Series.”
Koufax was perfect-game good on Sept. 9, 1965, against the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium, striking out 14.
Bravo started learning about No. 32 when his parents would bring him to Dodger Stadium as a young boy.
“I always saw No. 32 retired on the wall,” he said. “Once I got to know him, I was able to see who he really was. I felt I could really copy him and get myself deeper into history.”
Bravo is no Koufax in terms of being a power pitcher. He’s 5 feet 10 and 140 pounds. Since last season, when he changed his windup to briefly emulate Koufax’s arms going above his head, he has a 12-3 record. This season he’s 3-1 with a 1.50 ERA.
“I saw his windup and he looked like he was calm and composed and I tried it. I felt more of a rhythm. I was able to calm down and pitch better,” he said.
After Bravo’s arms go up over his head in his windup, he also does a brief hesitation breathing in and out before throwing the ball toward home plate.
“My dad always taught me to breathe in, breathe out before I do anything,” he said.
Nowadays, teenagers seemingly don’t pay much attention to greats of the past, from old ballplayers to Hall of Fame coaches. Ask someone if they know John Wooden, kids today probably don’t. He did win 10 NCAA basketball titles coaching for UCLA. And who was Don Drysdale? Only a Dodger Hall of Fame pitcher alongside Koufax from Van Nuys High.
Bravo is fortunate he’s seen Dodger broadcasts mentioning Koufax at the stadium and on TV, motivating him to learn more, which led to seeing his windup on YouTube.
His older brother also wore No. 32, so no one was getting that uniform number other than a Bravo brother at Poly.
There is another Bravo set to arrive in the fall. Julian Bravo will be a freshman left-handed pitcher and wants No. 32.
“While I’m there he’s going to have to find a new number,” Fabian Bravo said.
Julian might also want to help his big brother gain a few pounds at the dinner table.
“My brother takes food from me,” he said.
As for recognizing Bravo’s Koufax connection, it was No. 32 that provided the clue. How many pitchers in the 1970s were choosing No. 32? A lot. And it’s great to see a 17-year-old in 2026 paying tribute to one of the greatest pitchers ever.
Emulating Koufax is hard, but forgetting him is unforgivable.
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Eli Manning retired in 2019 and missed out in his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility in 2025. He was passed over again earlier this year but still fired back at a fan who claimed one of his contemporaries was the better quarterback.
On Tuesday, a social media user floated a theory about former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Ryan, who now oversees football operations as the team’s president, last played in an NFL game in 2022. He announced his retirement in 2024, making him eligible for Hall of Fame consideration beginning in 2028.
“Matt Ryan was a better QB than Eli Manning… people just worship rings. Agree or nah,” the post read.
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New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning greets Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan after their game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on Oct. 22, 2018. (Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports)
Manning caught wind of the suggestion and weighed in, pointing to the two Super Bowl-winning teams he was part of during his standout run with the New York Giants.
“I will ponder this while I play with my rings…,” Manning wrote in a quote-tweet.
Ryan’s statistical production surpasses Manning’s, at least on paper. He was named NFL MVP in 2016, an honor Manning never earned. Ryan is also the most accomplished player in Falcons history and finished his career with more than 62,000 regular-season passing yards, compared with Manning’s 57,023.
NFC head coach Eli Manning leads a huddle during a practice session before the NFL Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on Feb. 4, 2023. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Both quarterbacks were selected to four Pro Bowls, but the key difference lies in championships. Manning won the Super Bowl in 2007 and 2011, while Ryan reached it once but fell short. Manning threw for a single season career-best 4,933 during the run leading up to the second Super Bowl title.
Ryan threw for 284 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions to help the Falcons build a 25-point lead in the championship game — a matchup remembered for the New England Patriots engineering the largest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan passes the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the second half at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., on Jan. 2, 2022. (Rich Barnes/USA TODAY Sports)
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The Falcons have reached the Super Bowl twice in franchise history, first in 1998, but the team is still chasing its first elusive championship.
The Giants marked their 100th season in 2024, winning four Super Bowls over the franchise’s century-long history.
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