Is Joel Embiid playing tonight? Latest injury update for 76ers vs. Heat

Joel Embiid made his triumphant return from injury on Tuesday in the Philadelphia 76ers' 109-105 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. He tallied 24 points, six rebounds, seven assists, and three steals on 6-of-14 shooting in 29 minutes.

It was nice to see Embiid get up to speed so quickly. While it wasn't an outlier performance by his extremely high standards, the 30-year-old was able to log almost a full workload in his first game back. That is a promising sign.

Embiid previously missed two months — from Feb. 1 to March 31 — following meniscus surgery on his right knee. Once the consensus MVP frontrunner, Embiid is now aiming to get right in time for the playoffs. In fact, there's a good chance Philadelphia ends up in a do or die play-in situation as the No. 7 or 8 seed.

Perhaps the most important game left on the Sixers' regular season schedule is tonight, April 4, against the Miami Heat. As of now, Miami (42-33) occupies the No. 6 seed, 1.5 games ahead of the Sixers (41-35). A win moves Philly within half a game. A loss could effectively end Philadelphia's hopes of avoiding the play-in tournament.

Is Joel Embiid playing tonight? Sixers vs. Heat injury report

Embiid is currently listed as questionable due to 'Left Knee; Injury Recovery' for Thursday's pivotal matchup with the Heat.

Notably, Embiid made his reappearance in Tuesday's game despite carrying the same label well into the afternoon. There is currently an investigation into how Embiid was so quickly elevated from 'out' to 'questionable' to 'available,' so it's safe to say that, barring an unreported setback against OKC, Embiid is on the right track.

We can't know his fate with any certainty until the Sixers deliver an official update, but Embiid is likely more probable than questionable. Philadelphia has a back-to-back over the weekend, which means this is the first of three games in four nights. That could factor into the Sixers' decision-making, but it's more likely that Embiid notches a rest day on Saturday or Sunday, rather than Thursday.

Tonight is too important a game for Embiid to sit unless he truly cannot go. The Sixers will tread carefully — it's better to make the play-in with a healthy Embiid than to earn the No. 6 seed with Embiid unnecessarily banged up — but assuming the knee is stable, which it is, he should be on the floor against Miami.

Of course, every game is important down the stretch. The Sixers can't beat Miami, only to wet the bed against Memphis or San Antonio over the weekend. Philly needs to win the games they're supposed to win down the stretch.

The Miami game could have significant implications on the postseason landscape.