The Sixers made it official this week, shutting down Joel Embiid as he deals with persistent left knee troubles. The writing has been on the wall from many miles away but fantasy managers no longer have to put up with the constant monitoring of his status. He should be cut loose in all redraft formats and for many managers, it may be the last time they bother having the big man on their rosters at all. It’s a sad but predictable end after Embiid’s gold medal run in Paris led into knee troubles despite everyone’s insistence that he was fully healthy for the Olympics.

At no point in his brief cameo of a campaign did Embiid look like the MVP version of himself. The fleeting moments where it looked like he had his fastball back were followed up by absences and once he started openly musing to the media that he needed more work done on his knee to get back to full strength, it was over. If this is the new normal, and Embiid’s continuous physical breakdowns make that a distinct possibility, if not a true probability, then it will be tough to put up with on a day-to-day basis. At his very best, Embiid could contend for the No. 1 spot in fantasy. With legitimate questions about what his “best” looks like going forward, on top of the availability issues that have dogged him throughout his career aside from the one season he fought like hell to win MVP (rather than playoff games), he is fraught with draft risk. Embiid shuold get the Kawhi Leonard treatment to an extreme degree.

As for the remainder of this season, fantasy managers should already know what to expect given how frequently Embiid has been on the sidelines. Guerschon Yabusele is the big winner but is already unavailable in competitive leagues. The same goes for Kelly Oubre and Quentin Grimes, who have been handling excess scoring responsibility already. Maybe this gives Andre Drummond a little more runway to be relevant as a specialist or deep-league option. The most interesting development is what happens with Adem Bona, though that hinges on how the Sixers answer the most important question of all.

Do they bother to try? Philadelphia’s first-round pick is top-6 protected and they’re going to end up right around that ballpark. Even if they get to the Play-In — and between Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, the coaching staff and the competition, there should be enough to make the dance if everyone locks in — they are going to be a free lunch for Cleveland. In the big picture, it may make more sense for the Sixers to shut it down and give minutes to the younger players across the roster. That would benefit Bona, while the team’s composition would result in more small-ball with opportunities for Justin Edwards, Ricky Council IV, Jeff Dowtin and maybe even Jared Butler. And the big question for fantasy managers — would any of those guys matter in standard leagues?

It’s one thing to be bad on purpose; it’s another to be bad. It’s another thing entirely to be bad but no fun. To be bad, no fun and not have any silver lining in fantasy? Well, that’s the Sixers.

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