[Sport] NBA: Joel Embiid makes triumphant return with Philadelphia

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After 10 games out due to injury, Cameroonian Joel Embiid returned to the field scoring 24 points in the 122-113 victory of the Philadelphia 76ers against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Despite the inactivity, coach Doc Rivers kept Embiid on the court for 29 minutes to ensure the victory against the team with the worst record in the NBA (12 wins and 38 losses).

The center, one of the candidates for the MVP (Most Valuable Player) award, gave a great scare on March 12 when he suffered a contusion to his left knee, a diagnosis that the Sixers received with relief when they feared a much more serious injury.

Embiid had a new battle with the center of the Timberwolves, Karl-Anthony Towns, using himself with great intensity and suffering several heavy falls to the track.

With five minutes remaining, and with the Sixers leading 108-100, the 2.13-meter player sat exhausted on the bench for a timeout. Shortly after, Doc Rivers put him back on the floor and Embiid put a spectacular stopper on rookie Anthony Edwards with 15 seconds to go that ended Minnesota's hopes of victory.

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Embiid finished with 24 points, eight rebounds and three blocks on his personal tally. The Cameroonian, whose NBA career has been marked by injuries, is starring in his best season with averages of 29.9 points and 11.5 rebounds that have been key for the Sixers to be level with the Brooklyn Nets at the top of the Eastern Conference.

In the 10 games without the star from him, the Sixers recorded seven wins and three losses.

For his part, the Dominican-American Karl-Anthony Towns reached 39 points and 14 rebounds and the rookie Edwards to 27 points and three triples for the Timberwolves, who had the loss of Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio due to back problems.

In another game yesterday, the New York Knicks beat the Detroit Pistons 125-81 with 29 points and eight rebounds from All-Star power forward Julius Randle.

Last in the Eastern Conference, the Pistons had no response to the New York offensive barrage, in which guard Reggie Bullock added 22 points with six triples and guard RJ Barrett another 14 units.

The Knicks, seventh in the East, thus ended a three-game losing streak while the Pistons, who had Jerami Grant as the leading scorer with 16 points, were coming off a win Thursday against the Washington Wizards.