Joel Embiid and Paul George miss the Sixers' season opener due to knee injuries

The Sixers open their season on national television Wednesday against Doc Rivers' Bucks, but will be without their two best players. Philadelphia said Joel Embiid and Paul George would miss the season opener because of knee injuries and the duo could miss more games.

The Sixers said Jared McCain's status for Wednesday's opener will be determined later Tuesday. The rookie injured his lung in Philadelphia's 117-95 win over the Brooklyn Nets last week. The team said he would continue to expand his activities on the field.

Embiid saw the preseason for what the Sixers called Management of the left knee. On Tuesday, the Sixers said the former NBA MVP would not play this week and would be reevaluated over the weekend.

The team added that Embiid is “responding well to his individual plan and is expected to increase his return to game activities, including scrimming, this week.”

Embiid won one Gold medal with Team USA during the 2024 Paris Olympics and signed a $193 million contract extension before training camp.

Due to knee surgery, the 30-year-old was only able to play 39 games last season. In his career he never played more than 68 games per season. He recently told ESPN that he'll “probably never play back-to-back games for the rest of my career” to ensure he's healthy for the playoffs.

George, the Sixers valued free agent signingsuffered one Hyperextended left knee in a preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks. But an MRI showed a bone bruise No structural damage to the knee.

The Sixers said the 34-year-old will miss at least Wednesday's game and will be evaluated again later in the week.

Philadelphia plays Toronto on Friday and Indiana on Sunday.