Joel Embiid Had Emergency Surgery. The 76ers' Playoff Hopes Might Need One Too.

Joel Embiid woke up at 3 a.m. Thursday in Houston with stomach pain. By the afternoon, he was in surgery having his appendix removed. The 76ers announced the successful appendectomy while they were playing the Rockets that same night — without their franchise player, obviously.

Embiid has been released from the hospital and flew back to Philadelphia, but there's no timeline for his return. The average NBA player misses about 23 days after an appendectomy, which would put him out through at least the first round of the playoffs.

Here's where it gets brutal: Philadelphia is 43-37, tied with Charlotte for the 8th seed, one game back of Orlando for 7th and two behind Toronto and Atlanta for the final guaranteed playoff spots. The Play-In Tournament starts April 14. The 76ers are about to play the most important games of their season without their best player — again. Embiid has missed playoff time due to injury in seemingly every season of his career. This time, it's his appendix. You can't make this stuff up.