Even MVP-level talent faces trade speculation. Can Joel Embiid's superstar production overcome his injury history and massive contract for the Philadelphia 76ers?
Bleacher Report’s offseason trade-asset discussion is a reminder that even elite players can end up in the rumor mill, and Joel Embiid will always be one of the loudest names in that conversation due to his track record.
B/R predicts that the Philadelphia 76ers will "secretly" explore trades involving Embiid this offseason.
Philadelphia signed him to a three-year, $193 million extension in 2024 that now keeps him under contract through 2028-29, and his 2025-26 cap hit is $55.2 million. For now, Embiid does have the production to justify that amount of money.
When he is on the floor, Embiid still looks like a franchise centerpiece. He averaged 26.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 3.9 assists in 38 games this season, and he remained one of the league’s most productive half-court scorers even while battling health issues. Recently, he has come back from an appendectomy to help keep the Sixers alive in their series against the Boston Celtics.
That injury history is exactly what keeps the trade conversation alive. Embiid has had his career shaped by repeated physical setbacks, including the recent appendectomy and a season in which he played only 38 games.
He also spent much of the 2024-25 season dealing with a knee injury that limited him to 19 games, which makes the question around him less about talent and more about whether Philadelphia can keep building around a player who is often unavailable.
That is why the Sixers would even consider dealing him. Not because he stopped being great, but because his combination of superstar production, huge cap hit, and constant injury uncertainty makes roster-building difficult. Any team trading for him would have to absorb an extreme salary and still believe they can get enough basketball out of him to justify the risk.
For Philadelphia, the question is whether that gamble is still worth it or whether it makes more sense to reset around younger, more durable pieces like Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe. For now, Embiid remains the face of the franchise and hopes to lead the Sixers to playoff success despite his long history of injuries.
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Wes Dixon is a contributing writer to 76ersRoundtable. He can be reached at dixonwesley286@gmail.com.