Joel Embiid joins group of current and future Hall of Famers for all the wrong reasons

Joel Embiid nearly finished Game 5 against the New York Knicks with a quadruple-double (albeit not the official kind). Embiid contributed 19 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and nine turnovers, as the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Knicks, 112-106 in overtime, to stay alive in the series.

While the turnover portion of that stat line wouldn’t have counted as a quadruple-double, the nine turnovers put Embiid in a category with some elite names, nonetheless. Multiple current and future Hall of Famers have also recorded nine or more turnovers in a playoff game since 1984.

Embiid joined a list that includes names like LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Moses Malone, Kevin Garnett, Dwayne Wade and others. James Harden holds the record with 12 turnovers in a postseason game. Harden accomplished this during the 2015 Western Conference Finals in a Game 5, series-ending loss to the Golden State Warriors, 104-90.

Luckily for Embiid and Philly, Tyrese Maxey had his A+ game Tuesday, dropping 46 points on New York while shooting 56.7 percent from the field and 58.3 from three-point range. Embiid struggled most of the night, having entered Tuesday’s game dealing with a migraine and ongoing knee issues.

On top of those ailings, it was discovered last week that Embiid suffered a bout of Bell’s Palsy before the start of Philadelphia’s first-round series with New York.

“Sixers star Joel Embiid has been treated for a mild case of Bell’s palsy for the past week. The condition began during the play-in victory over Miami but he has wanted to keep it private to avoid distractions for his team,” said Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

With everything Embiid’s gone through, it’s a wonder he was able to play 48 minutes in this must-win. Despite all the turnovers in Game 5, being hampered by knee pain, headaches and Bell’s Palsy, Embiid is far from a quitter and will continue to remind the world of that.