When the Philadelphia 76ers’ first-round playoff series vs. the New York Knicks began, all eyes were on Joel Embiid’s surgically repaired knee and his overall conditioning level after he’d only been back for six games following a two-month absence.

As the series (which the Knicks lead 2-1 after Philly’s Game 3 win on Thursday) has progressed, however, attention has increasingly shifted to Embiid’s face. Specifically, the left side of his face, which has been visibly drooping, and his left eye, which hasn’t been blinking.

In his postgame interview on Thursday, Embiid confirmed that he has been dealing with, and has been treated for, a case of Bell’s palsy for the last week-plus, since a few days before Philadelphia’s Play-In victory over the Miami Heat last Tuesday.

Joel Embiid confirmed that he has had a case of Bell’s palsy over the last week-plus. He said it began 1-2 days before the Play-In game against the Heat. He had migraines. It has affected the left side of his face and mouth.

Embiid: “It’s been tough… It’s unfortunate.” pic.twitter.com/0EOPWlAGXx

— Mike Vorkunov (@MikeVorkunov) April 26, 2024
In a previous report before Embiid spoke, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski noted that Embiid had been trying to keep the condition private so as to avoid a distraction for the Sixers, but as this has become increasingly visible to even casual observers, it was going to be hard to keep it under wraps.

Here is a good explanation of what Bell’s palsy is and how it’s affecting Embiid from Dr. Brian Sutterer, who has been calling attention to Embiid’s condition for the past few days.

The good news for the Sixers is despite the Bell’s palsy diagnosis and the surgically repaired knee, Embiid is playing fantastic. He was particularly brilliant in Game 3, when he became the 13th player in NBA history to score 50 points in a playoff game.

Embiid finished with 50 on the dot to go with eight rebounds and four assists. He made 13 of his 19 shots, including five 3-pointers, while marching to the line for 21 free throws.

As well as Embiid played on Thursday, there’s a strong case to be made that he should’ve been ejected from the game for this blatantly flagrant foul on Mitchell Robinson, who limped his way through the rest of the first half and was unable to return in the second half.

Joel Embiid received a Flagrant 1 after this foul on Mitchell Robinson 😳 pic.twitter.com/2ygeQh8gMG

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 26, 2024
It was one of several plays by Embiid that erred on the side of flopping and sometimes outright dangerous.

After the way Game 2 ended, with the league admitting in its Last Two-Minute Report that officials screwed up the sequence that led to New York winning in absolutely wild fashion, it wasn’t all that surprising that the whistle went Philadelphia’s way on Thursday. Embiid took more free throws by himself than the Knicks did as a team.

But you know what they say: bad calls even out. Theoretically. So the Sixers get the raw end of the deal in Game 2 and Embiid gets to stay in Game 3 when he probably should’ve been tossed. And now we’ve got a series. Let’s just now hope that Embiid’s latest reported ailment is on its way to healing.

It was a night to forget for Philadelphia 76ers guard Kelly Oubre Jr. According to Gina Mizell of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Oubre crashed his Lamborghini hours after the team’s Game 2 loss against the New York Knicks.

The Sixers guard reportedly ran a red light and crashed into another car.

The incident reportedly occurred around 1:45 a.m. on Tuesday. Police said Oubre “disregarded a red traffic signal” and crashed into a 2023 Hyundai Elantra. Both cars were towed from the scene, but no injuries were reported.

“Everything is good,” Oubre said. “I’m OK. The people who were involved are OK, but I’m gonna need to probably get a driver or something and just stay off the roads and behind the wheel. But everything is good.”

The incident came just hours after the Sixers suffered a heartbreaking and controversial Game 2 loss against the New York Knicks. The Knicks erased a 101-96 deficit in the final seconds, and Donte DiVincenzo ended up nailing a game-winning 3-pointer.

Oubre tallied just 4 points on 2-of-7 shooting to go along with three assists and two rebounds in the 104-101 loss.

The Sixers did bounce back in a big way with a 125-114 win in Game 3 of the opening-round series on Thursday behind a 50-point performance from Joel Embiid. Oubre added 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting and seven rebounds in the victory.

The Pacers have momentum on their side as they return home to host the Bucks in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. Indiana won Game 2 in Milwaukee, running away in the second half to take home-court advantage. They’ll try to keep it going on Friday evening.

With Giannis Antetokounmpo sidelined so far with a calf issue and Damian Lillard cooling off in the second half of games, Pascal Siakam has been the most consistent star in this series. Siakam is showing why the Pacers traded for him earlier this season, and the former Raptor is averaging 36.5 points and 12 rebounds per game. Siakam’s 73 points were the most of any player in the playoffs through the first two games of each series.

“We’ve got to be the hungry team,” Siakam told reporters after the Game 2 win on Tuesday. “We’ve got to be the team that’s coming in and wanting to show something. That’s the attitude that we’ve got to have against those guys, because they’ve done it before.”

Here’s what to know about Friday’s Game 3:

Pacers vs. Bucks — Game 3 info
Time: 5:30 p.m. ET | Date: Friday, April 26
Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
TV channel: ESPN | Live stream: fubo (try for free)
Odds: Pacers -6, O/U: 221.5

Storylines
Bucks: Damian Lillard has put up big numbers in his first two playoff games as a Buck. With Giannis out, Dame has shouldered the offensive burden, posting 35 points in a Game 1 win. All of those points came in the first half. Lillard then scored 34 points in Game 2, and 26 of them came in the first half. The other eight came in the third quarter. That means Lillard, famous for his “Dame Time” clutch shots in the playoffs, has yet to score a fourth-quarter point in this series. That’s destined to change soon, and the Bucks will need it to if they’re going to pull this series out. In addition to Antetokounmpo’s issue, Khris Middleton is also nursing an ankle injury ahead of Game 3.

Pacers: Siakam has stolen the show for Indiana, and the team has settled in after a rough first half of Game 1. The Pacers have out-scored the Bucks by 29 points in the last six quarters of basketball, and they played more at their pace in Game 2. Every starter scored in double figures for the Pacers on Tuesday, and they shot 55.6% from the field.

Prediction
The Pacers have looked like the stronger team for most of this series. Without Giannis returning, and with the Pacers being at home on Friday, expect that to continue as the East’s No. 6 seed takes a 2-1 series lead. Tyrese Haliburton should up his scoring a bit, too, after totaling just 21 points in the first two games: Pick: Pacers -6