And for the Knicks, the gameplan should be simple: Embiid underwent surgery in early February, aggravated his left knee in his final game of the regular season, then injured it again in the first half of Game 1.

The Knicks must take advantage of Embiid’s gimpy knee, be it with physical play or running him through actions to test his lateral movement.

It’s their only way to return to the second round of the playoffs against a Sixers team effectively deploying the best player in the series.

Embiid scored 15 points in the first quarter alone and had 18 first-half points before leaving the game with just under three minutes left in the second period. He was a step slow in Philadelphia’s play-in tournament victory over the Miami Heat on Wednesday and was still visibly limited in the first half on Saturday before his awkward landing on a generational poster dunk.

“Obviously, if you’re averaging 34 points a game or 35 points a game, you’re an elite scorer. And [Embiid] does it a lot of different ways,” said Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau ahead of tipoff on Saturday. “So, he can shoot the ball. He can put it on the floor. He can post up. He can offensive rebound. And so, we have to guard him with our team. We gotta try to make him work for his points. He’s gotta see people, and then we’ll go from there.”

And after turning his knee, Embiid resigned himself as more of a jump shooter, with shots falling well short due to his first half injury.

Which made him much more comfortable of a defensive assignment for Mitchell Robinson, whose size, length and athleticism helped combat a limited Embiid in the second half.

The star Sixers big man shot 6 for 11 in the first quarter but shot 2 for 11 the rest of the night.

Embiid’s knee is now on inflammation watch. Heat star Jimmy Butler suffered a similar injury in Wednesday’s matchup against the Sixers.

Like Embiid, he left his feet to finish around the rim.

Like Embiid, he crumbled to the ground and grabbed his knee after landing.

And like Embiid, Butler returned and gritted through the rest of the game with a shot to help his Heat earn the No. 7 seed.

An MRI later revealed Butler suffered an MCL sprain. He is out multiple weeks — after playing on an injury seeming severe in the moment.

The Knicks won Game 1, and while Embiid’s status going forward is unclear, it’s clear the star big man is limited, playing at a deficit on a leg-and-a-half.

New York must take advantage — both of Embiid’s limitations and his minutes off the court. A series against a scrappy and resilient Sixers team will depend on it.

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