Nick Nurse, Sixers trying to get Joel Embiid's mind back on basketball after locker room altercation

PHOENIX — Nick Nurse knows one of his immediate jobs as 76ers coach is to get Joel Embiid focused on basketball.

That effort is part of the reason Nurse spoke to Embiid on Sunday, one day after the franchise player physically confronted and shoved Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes in the Sixers locker room at the Wells Fargo Center.

The NBA is investigating the incident involving Embiid and Hayes. And while the 7-foot-2, 280-pounder has been managing his left knee injury and working to get healthy enough to play, Embiid’s availability also could depend on the results of the league’s findings and final decision.

“As always, I asked how he was feeling, first of all, and tried to get him locked into what we’re doing,” Nurse said of his conversation with Embiid. “I’m concerned about getting him on the floor, making sure he understands who he’s playing with, what they are doing, what all that stuff looks like. We’ve been able to get him into more of that work today.

“Yeah, I think playing will help him. Yeah, I think it will help him get focused.”

Embiid is on the Sixers’ three-game road trip but will not make his season debut Monday night against the Phoenix Suns at the Footprint Center. The 2023 MVP did, however, practice with his teammates Sunday evening at Arizona State University’s Weatherup Center.

After facing the Suns, the Sixers (1-4) will travel to Los Angeles on Tuesday. They’ll play the Clippers on Wednesday at Intuit Dome and remain in the city to face the Lakers on Friday at Crypto.com Arena.

Asked if he expects Embiid to play during this trip, Nurse responded, “Well, I think that we are, again, right there and, again, steps in the right direction.”

But the coach added, “It probably wouldn’t surprise me either way.”

Embiid looked fine competing in post-practice shooting drills at ASU.

The 30-year-old had surgery in February to repair torn cartilage in his left knee. After missing 29 games, Embiid returned on April 2 and played five games before the playoffs. Embiid was hampered by the knee in the opening-round playoff series against the New York Knicks. Still, he opted to play for Team USA in the Olympics, where he won a gold medal, instead of resting his knee.

There was some speculation that he had a setback during the Olympic Games, causing him to miss the entire preseason and at least the first six regular-season games. However, Embiid has denied any setbacks that led to his being sidelined.