Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers has battled knee injuries for several seasons, playing just 50 games overall since the start of last campaign. After undergoing left meniscus surgery in January 2024, the 2023 MVP has navigated some tough times, including the 2024 Olympics, during which he played a key role for Team USA and returned with a gold medal.
And well, Drew Hanlen, widely considered the best skills coach in the NBA, recently detailed the determination shown by Embiid despite his recent absences due to injury.
"People don't realize, that's why the Olympics happen. Obviously, people know he was, you know, dragging himself through the Olympics, but this was his chance to actually win. You know, he won a gold medal. Of course, they were a loaded team, but they couldn't have won the gold medal without him in the Serbia game, you know?" Hanlen said, referencing the Olympic semifinals, which Team USA won 95-91, according to a post on X by ClutchPoints.
"We came back to the lab. And she said, 'I feel like me again.' And in the next game his score was 39, and since then he has averaged 30. That's so good."
NBA trainer Drew Hanlen looks like his old self again on Joel Embiid 🗣
(via @KevinO'Connor)pic.twitter.com/HkuvvOYFl1
- ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) 18 February 2026
Hanlen revealed that Embiid decided not to do skill workouts after returning, instead prioritizing his health.
"After that, until this season, mid-season, I think it was like December 10th, we didn't work out once. This is a guy I've worked out with more times than anyone else because he's obsessed with basketball, but he couldn't work out because he was like: "You know what? I have to get my health back,” Hanlen said.
Embiid, who is still on a minutes restriction, is effectively struggling due to the lack of basketball workouts after being forced to take care of his knee. Hanlen cited this behind-the-scenes work as one of the reasons he struggled in the first half of the current campaign.
Drew Hanlen claims Embiid "feels like himself again."
Hanlen claimed Embiid was forced to use NBA games as a means of getting back into shape, ultimately deciding to grind it out like "old school Joel".
“And I remember at one point he was like: “Hey, I know I really shouldn't do this,” but, like, he was like: “Come on, we've got to figure out my jump shot. My mid-range is closed, which never closes. Mine is three closed, which never closes. And so we did a workout, a workout, and we did, like old school Joel, for an hour and a half, probably shouldn't have done it, but it was like we were back in the lab, and he's like, "I feel like me again." He said.
This returned him to his previous level, which apparently convinced Hanlein as well.
"And the next game, he had forty-nine, and since then, his average is, like, thirty. That's how good he is," he revealed.
With the 76ers returning following Paul George's 25-game suspension, Embiid becomes even more important as they attempt to build on their current 30-24 record. The season isn't over yet, and despite Embiid's latest absence, Hanlen's claims certainly give fans plenty of reason for optimism.
