Yahoo Sports senior NBA analyst Kevin O’Connor and NBA contributing writer Tom Haberstroh discuss why the NBA is investigating the 76ers for resting Joel Embiid and if load management will prevent Philadelphia from making the playoffs. Hear the full conversation on “The Kevin O’Connor Show” and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen.

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We had reports earlier in the night from Sham Sharana who said the NBA is likely to begin an investigation later this week into the Philadelphia 76ers surrounding the player participation of all NBA center, Joel and Bead.

And then he later wrote, it's typical for the NBA to review a team anytime a superstar player misses a nationally televised game as per the player participation policy.

So Tom, I ask you if this is typical as Shams wrote, uh what do you make of this actually being reported?

Like there's like a threat from the NBA to say, hey, no screwing around here?

Like what, what's the reason for this if this is typical?

So now you're gonna see left knee injury, left knee soreness going forward, the management word is gonna be out, that's what's gonna happen going forward is if you just said that Joel and Bead is gonna be out with left knee soreness or what, what have you.

I don't think there's an investigation.

I think that management word is a stigma, it is a buzzword, it is gonna trigger some sort of investigation by the league office and you're gonna see, I think going forward teams getting rid of that word management so they can avoid this situation.

And it's also Kevin an admission that the Philadelphia 76ers view the regular season as an 82 game preseason.

That's it.

This entire season is all about just getting to the playoffs in one piece.

Fans want to see Paul George Joel and Bead playing for their team.

And unfortunately Darryl Morey and the medical staff decided for their best chances to win a championship.

They're not gonna play opening night.

They're gonna sit and the NBA is not happy about it.

You at least need one of those guys, Paul George or Joel MB to be competitive against the other best teams in the league.

Or else you like, you talk about setting yourself up for success in the postseason, but, you know, you know, having these guys on bubble wrap the whole year treating it like an 82 game preseason, as you said, it's a good way to put it, but you also do need to have good seeding like you don't wanna be the seventh seed and the eight or the eight seed and have to be in the play and it's really competitive in both conferences right now.

I do think that there is a risk here not to overreact to a game one.

But if you play with your food, you know, sometimes you're gonna be left out of the playoffs.

We've seen, uh, lebron James Stephen, Curry, Miss the playoffs entirely.

And I think that is at stake here if the, if the Philadelphia 76ers don't get serious about playing in the regular season.

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