Latest Joel Embiid setback should make the 76ers' trade deadline priority abundantly clear

The Philadelphia 76ers are nine games below .500 after dropping four straight. Joel Embiid has been nursing a foot sprain, the latest in a series of baffling and unrelenting injuries plaguing the one-time MVP. Now, with his foot healed, Embiid has suffered another setback.

Embiid's left knee, which has been a constant agent of terror for 76ers fans this season, began to swell up after an on-court workout Thursday. He will miss the next 7-10 days at least, per ESPN's Shams Charania.

How do the 76ers proceed from here? It's impossible to conjure a satisfying answer. Most fans are prepared to tank at this point. Philadelphia might not get the choice. Tyrese Maxey and Paul George are still on the floor, but neither has performed up to expectations this season. The supporting cast is generally strong, but Philadelphia without Embiid is a ship without its sail.

If Embiid ever gets the ominious "out indefinitely" label, Philadelphia shouldn't have too much trouble slipping into the NBA basement. The Sixers' first-round pick for the 2025 NBA Draft is top-six protected, which means anything in the 7-30 range is shipped to Oklahoma City Thunder as part of the Al Horford trade. If the Sixers want to better their odds of landing a high draft pick, losing is a necessity. Right now, the Sixers are slated for the eighth pick, with a six percent chance of winning the lottery and picking No. 1.

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76ers' trade deadline priority crystalizes with latest Joel Embiid injury setback

Philadelphia needs to tank hard. Their odds of keeping the pick are not great — the seven teams below them in the standings will also tank hard — but absent an unexpected resurgence from Paul George or a miracle stretch of good health from Embiid over the second half of the campaign, there's not much else the Sixers can do.

A lot of the role players on Philadelphia's roster will return value, however modest, on the trade market. Kelly Oubre, Caleb Martin, KJ Martin, and especially Guerschon Yabusele would all pique the interest of contenders around the league. The best plan for Philadelphia, however, is to dangle these pieces to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for lightened or removed protections on the 76ers' first round.

Swapping Yabusele for dissolved protections on their own 2025 first-round pick? The Sixers would have to consider it. The French forward has been a revelation this season in his second NBA stint, but he's too good for Philadelphia to afford next offseason. With playoff hopes fading, the 76ers really don't have a reason to cling tightly.

OKC might drive a hard bargain — Sam Presti would love another top-10 pick in his stable — but Yabu has been among the very best role players in the NBA this season, and he fits into an archetype the Thunder should value. His physicality and size in the frontcourt, as well as 3-point shooting and sharp connective passing, would fit beautifully into the mix behind Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein.

If Philadelphia can remove the top-six protection from their pick, that removes a great deal of stress from the forthcoming tank effort. It even allows the Sixers to promote quality play from the likes of Embiid and George down the stretch, should it come naturally. Essentially, the Sixers can plan to tank, but know that a failure to bottom out will not cripple them for the next decade.

This is a loaded draft class. Even the 10th pick would pay dividends for Philadelphia, especially with Daryl Morey's strong track record of prospect evaluation. If OKC is willing to engage in a trade like this, Morey should've been on the phone yesterday.