PHILADELPHIA – The Timberwolves rested their starters in their final preseason game, a 126-110 loss to the 76ers on Friday night that was notable for the return of perennially injured Philadelphia All-Star Joel Embiid.
Leonard Miller scored 21 points to lead the Wolves, who had nine inactive players and started a lineup of reserves — Miller, Johnny Juzang, Joan Beringer, Jaylen Clark and Rob Dillingham — after the regulars played in Thursday night’s game at Chicago. The regular season begins Wednesday night at Portland.
Clark scored 14 points, Beringer had 13 and Dillingham 11. The Wolves never led, trailing by six after one quarter, seven at halftime and 11 after three quarters.
Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points and VJ Edgecombe had 26 for Philadelphia. Playing 18 minutes, 35 seconds, Embiid had 14 points and seven rebounds in his first game action in nearly eight months. The two-time NBA scoring champion was limited to 19 games last season because of injuries.
Embiid didn’t take long to get going — he tried a three-pointer, which missed, on Philadelphia’s first possession only seven seconds into the contest. He played about six minutes in his first stint to open the game, then played the first three minutes of the second quarter for his second stint.
It was Embiid’s first game since Feb. 22. He missed the first nine games of the 2024-25 season, never played more than four consecutive games and wound up being shut down for the final 26 games of the year as the 76ers sputtered to a 24-58 finish.
“I’ve had so many injuries,” Embiid said last month. “The only thing I’ve always told myself is you can’t give up.”
