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.”

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)

The San Francisco 49ers are certainly welcoming Brandon Aiyuk trade rumors with open arms.

The speculation is that Aiyuk has been on the trade block for quite some time — even fellow 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel has been a name discussed in recent weeks.

Aiyuk’s name, though, is in circles as he is trying to get a new contract.

Well, the 49ers drafted Florida wide receiver Ricky Pearsall in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday night, turning the Aiyuk speculation up higher.

But despite his time in the Bay Area appearing to be winding down, the veteran actually gave his seal of approval to the pick.

Aiyuk texted both 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch, letting them know how he truly felt about the Gator standout.

“Fire pick, can’t lie,” Aiyuk apparently told his bosses.

Pearsall had 65 catches for 965 yards and four TDs last season at Florida and gives the 49ers a possible option as a slot receiver.

Ricky Pearsall of the Florida Gators catches a pass during the first half of the game against the Charlotte 49ers at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida, on Sept. 23, 2023. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)

SEAN PAYTON DIVES INTO BRONCOS’ SELECTION OF BO NIX: ‘THIS WAS OUR TARGET’

Pearsall began his college career at Arizona State, where he was teammates with Aiyuk in 2019, leading to the complimentary text Aiyuk sent to Lynch and a congratulatory call to Pearsall.

“We have a really good relationship,” Pearsall said. “I just got off the phone with [Aiyuk] before I got over here on this Zoom call, and he was just congratulating me and telling me over and over again, ‘You’re a first rounder, man. Soak it up.’ There’s been a lot of work put in since we last ran routes together. I feel like I’m a totally different player since the last time we’ve seen each other.”

The 49ers, fresh off an NFC championship but blowing yet another double-digit, fourth-quarter lead in the Super Bowl, selected Pearsall with the 30th pick of the draft.

JaTravis Broughton of the Utah Utes breaks up a pass intended for Ricky Pearsall of the Florida Gators during their game at Rice Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Aug. 31, 2023. (Chris Gardner/Getty Images)

This year was the first time the 49ers had a pick in the first round since 2021, when they drafted quarterback Trey Lance third overall. San Francisco traded their first-round picks in 2022 and 2023 to move up nine spots that year to take Lance, who started only four games for the team before being traded to Dallas last August.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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They were both first-round picks, this father and son, but the boy now will forever hold an advantage over the old man.

Joe Alt was taken fifth overall by the Chargers on Thursday, four decades after John went 21st overall to the Kansas City Chiefs.

“We’re a little competitive in our family,” John said, smiling. “So that will be one of the ‘gotchas,’ I’m sure.”

The Chargers introduced their latest first-rounder Friday afternoon at their training facility in Costa Mesa, Joe Alt explaining that he felt gratitude and “straight excitement” for the opportunity before him.

Listed by the NFL at 6-foot-9, 321 pounds, he’s expected to add a significant presence for the Chargers at right tackle on offense.

The addition of Alt marked another step in coach Jim Harbaugh’s expressed desire to transform the Chargers into a more powerful, line-of-scrimmage force.

Alt, 21, sounded ready for the assignment when he was asked what he liked best about playing offensive line.

“Being able to hit someone every single play,” he answered. “You don’t have a play off. You’re going to be throwing your head in there whether it’s a pass or a run.”

As a Charger, Alt said he would wear No. 76, the same number he had at Notre Dame and the one his father wore for 13 years as an offensive tackle for the Chiefs beginning in 1984.

John Alt, listed at 6-8, 298 pounds, was a two-time Pro Bowl player who started 149 NFL games after coming out of the University of Iowa.

Both Alts reached the pros in part because of the athleticism they possessed inside their large frames.

Explaining that he “might have been a little better athlete,” John said he ran a 4.96-second 40-yard dash in the pre-draft process compared to 5.05 for his son. He also said his vertical jump was eight inches superior.

“We’ve been competing a little bit,” John said, smiling again. “You know how is it. You remember things the way you want them sometimes.”

Alt was in the second grade when his father began coaching him, a tutelage that continued through Alt’s time at Totino-Grace High School, near Minneapolis.

Knowing his son had a similar body type, John said he always figured Alt was destined to play offensive line. But for much of the time he was growing up, Alt was a quarterback before moving to tight end for his junior year of high school.

Chargers draft pick Joe Alt, left, poses with his parents, Carolyn, center, and John during a news conference in Costa Mesa on Friday.

(Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press)

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“I just wanted to give him a chance to play some other positions and learn the game,” John said. “I think that’s a great experience for anybody.”

Said Alt of his dad: “He was there. He allowed me to really learn what football was and [gain] an appreciation for the game and what it did for me and my family.”

All along, the two worked on offensive line-type drills, John emphasizing footwork and agility, particularly after Alt experienced a five-inch growth spurt, reaching 6-7 midway through high school.

John said he realized that if his son could maintain his coordination “through that period of growth, he’d come out the other end with what he wanted.”

Still, Alt was not highly recruited, with Iowa and Minnesota being the only Big Ten schools to pursue him. But the idea of reaching the NFL remained a constant driving influence, Alt explained.

“Football’s all I can remember growing up,” he said. “Walking into the basement, my dad’s jersey was hung up at the bottom of the steps. It was a dream for me for my entire life.”

Alt’s brother, Mark, is a professional hockey player and spent a brief time with the Kings in 2020-21. Alt said he gave up hockey in the second grade because “I got a little heavy for it.”

Now, he finds himself as a weighty addition in the rebuilding of the Chargers, a team Harbaugh and his assistants have touted as an ideal destination for offensive linemen.

“Being wanted is one of the best feelings in the world,” Alt said. “Being [at] a position that the coaches and people feel matters just makes you want to do it that much more and do it for them because they care so much about it.”