76ers' Joel Embiid draws harsh comparison to end of career Shaquille O'Neal

After a tumultuous first nine games of the season, the Philadelphia 76ers finally got superstar center Joel Embiid back . The former MVP played his first game of the 2024-25 season last night, but not everyone was happy about Embiid's performance .

Embiid's season debut had been delayed by "injury management," as well as a suspension from the league following an altercation with a reporter. So when he took the floor against the New York Knicks on Tuesday, it was expected by many that Embiid, and his oft-criticized conditioning, would not be up to par.

The expectation became reality when Embiid, in 26 minutes of work, went 2-for-11 from the field during a 13-point, 3-rebound showing.

After the game, popular podcaster Bill Simmons gave his thoughts on Embiid's season debut .

"[Embiid] played for about 5 minutes, and he looked like he was going to keel over, and he left, disappeared. Was he hurt? Not sure. Came back, played some more," Simmons said in the 'Bill Simmons Podcast.' "Every time the game stopped, he was keeled over with both hands on his knees like a 53-year-old guy playing pickup over Thanksgiving. It was pretty brutal. Paul George looked good, Embiid did not. They lost, and I guess this is just how it's going to go as Embiid 'plays himself into shape.' I'm doing air quotes."

As part of the conversation, Kirk Goldsberry brought up Shaquille O'Neal , whose conditioning and weight were, like Embiid, often questioned and criticized.

"This is what happens to big guys, so right now, what [Embiid] looked like tonight, he's in like the 2008 Phoenix range," Simmons said. "He's been in the league 11 years. I don't know, if I was a Sixer fan, I'd be losing my mind. I'd just be like, how did all of this happen? Why did he play in the Olympics? Why didn't you tell us what happened to him with his legs before the season started? Why was there all this mystery around it? Is he healthy now? What's wrong with him now? Can you tell us?"

Is it fair to compare Joel Embiid to old Shaquille O'Neal?

O'Neal, a four-time NBA champion and former league MVP, struggled with injuries and his weight during the later stages of his career. After falling out with the Miami Heat in 2008, O'Neal was traded to the Suns, where he averaged just 12.9 points during his first partial season with the team.

If the O'Neal-Embiid comparisons were to hold, the 76ers star would be in line for a return to form eventually. O'Neal, who credits the Suns training staff for helping him work through his injuries, played 75 games in 2008-09, the most in a season in nearly a decade, and averaged 17.8 points and shot a league-best 60.9% from the field while playing 30 minutes per game.

That would prove to be O'Neal's last good season, though, as he left Phoenix for the Cleveland Cavaliers the following season. In LeBron James' last season with the Cavs (for a few years), O'Neal played just 53 games and averaged career lows in minutes, points, rebounds, and blocks. Things continued to trend downward the next year as O'Neal finished his career with the Boston Celtics, with whom he played 36 games.

Embiid is several years younger than O'Neal was at this point in their respective careers albeit with multiple more severe injuries on his record. The 76ers big man, whose pro debut was delayed as a result of foot and knee injuries, underwent meniscus surgery in February, which is the latest in a long list of procedures and various ailments for Embiid.