Joel Embiid posts triple-double for Sixers in winning return - ESPN

PHILADELPHIA — After putting up a 29-point triple-double in his first game action in a month, 76ers star Joel Embiid admitted the ongoing issues with his knee and foot have been «extremely» frustrating, but he's hoping they might finally be behind him.

«You just got to try to find the positives, but it's tough,» Embiid said after a 118-116 win over the Dallas Mavericks at Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday night. «So, trying to manage it, trying to find a solution, and it just keeps happening.

»So, hopefully this time around is for good. I feel pretty good, but it can be unpredictable.… I haven't really had time to really recover, so until I get that time, it could be like that. So just got to keep going, do the right things, take care of yourself and hope for the best."

Embiid's return Tuesday came exactly one month after his last game, when he had 28 points in 29 minutes in a 29-point win in Brooklyn over the Nets on Jan. 4. He missed 15 consecutive games with a combination of a foot sprain and knee swelling.

Embiid had been gradually working toward a return over the past week, working out pregame before each of the previous four 76ers home games over that span against the Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings, Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics.

But until Tuesday, he had never been listed as anything but out. Then, he was upgraded to questionable for Tuesday's contest, and after going through a pregame walkthrough at the arena late Tuesday afternoon, he was officially listed as available to play right afterward.

«Obviously, played a lot of minutes, a triple-double, and I thought he made some key plays when we needed him to,» 76ers coach Nick Nurse said. «Some of the stretches looked a little clunky, but I think we were able