Philadelphia 76ers star centre Joel Embiid has been ruled out for Monday's Game 1 against the Boston Celtics due to a sprained right knee, head coach Doc Rivers announced Monday.
There is optimism Embiid could possibly return for Game 2 on Wednesday, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The 29-year-old sustained the injury in Game 3 of the 76ers' first-round series against the Brooklyn Nets and missed Game 4.
He had extended time to rest after his injury an has done some light shooting and drills during Philadelphia's workouts the past two days.
"That was his first real court time, but there was zero running still," Rivers said. "You've just got to fill the void. It's not going to be one guy or anything like that. We do have experience with it this year. We've done much better than in years past. So we're going to lean on that."
Embiid averaged 33.1 points this season to win his second straight scoring title. He also averaged 10.2 rebounds and tied a career high with 4.2 assists per game. He played in 66 games, the second-highest total of his career.
-With files from the Associated Press
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