PHILADELPHIA _ Joel Embiid emerged Wednesday night from the tunnel between the baseline and the 76ers bench to thunderous applause.
He surveyed his surroundings and gave his teammates high fives while running on the court during player introductions.
"I try to make it a regular day," Embiid said before the season opener against the Thunder at Wells Fargo Center. "It's hard. You think what you've gone through the past two years, the loss of my brother and having to get another surgery and all of the ups and downs."
Oklahoma City escaped, 103-97, in a thriller thanks to Russell Westbrook. The NBA all-star point guard finished with a game-high 32 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists in the come-from-behind victory.
But it can be argued that this expected loss didn't matter to a portion of fans in the Philadelphia area. To them, this was Joel Embiid Night.
The 22-year-old finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in his first real game _ not counting preseason exhibitions _ since a lower back injury derailed him in March 2014 while at Kansas. Two and half years and two foot surgeries later, he is back on the court, seemingly better than ever.
So Wednesday was a fitting scenario to make a debut. The 7-foot-2, 276-pounder faced the Thunder and their brute of a center, Steven Adams, in an ESPN game.
The self-proclaimed "Process" showed Adams and a national television audience that he just might be worth the two-year wait.
A stress fracture in his lower back concluded his lone season at Kansas in a March 1, 2014, game at Oklahoma State. Still, he was projected to be the first overall pick in that June's NBA draft. However, all that changed when it was revealed a week earlier that Embiid has a stress fracture in the navicular bone in his right foot.
The Cavaliers and Bucks _ the squads with the first two picks _ took him off their draft boards. Despite the uncertainty, then Sixers general manager, Sam Hinkie, selected him third. The plan was to sit him out for what was supposed to be his rookie season. He also had to deal with the death of his brother, Arthur, back in his native Cameroon on Oct. 16, 2014. Added to that, his bone never fully healed.
So Embiid had a second surgery _ this time a bone-graft _ in August 2015 and also missed last season. All the while, the Sixers were criticized for drafting a player who in the minds of many would never play in an actual game.
"There are times that I get emotional watching him today in shootaround," coach Brett Brown said. "And you see how many seats with white shirts on them, and it's opening night and Joel Embiid is here."
Brown recalls the work and the emotional strain the Embiid went through, wondering if he would ever play again.
"To see him arrive now and tonight is a special night," he added. "I'm so proud of him."
It didn't take for him give the Sixers crowd something to cheer about. He blocked Westbrook's 7-foot jumper 3 minutes, 59 seconds into the matchup.
Throughout the game, the crowd was chanting "Trust the process" or "MVP" when Embiid went to the foul line.
And feeling it in the fourth quarter, he gave his opinion of Adams' defense to no one in particular.
Embiid was fouled by the Thunder center with 10:17 left while going to the basket. He yelled, "He can't guard me" while standing at the foul line. Embiid said the same thing on the Sixers' ensuing possession when Adams hacked him again while going to the basket.
Embiid made 6 of 16 baskets and made 7 of 8 foul shots in his 22:25 of action.
But Westbrook led the Thunder's late charge.
He responded with a pair of foul shots to give a 99-97 lead with 35 seconds left. Embiid appeared to have his shot blocked on the ensuing possession, but the Sixers retained the ball. After a Sixers timeout Andre Roberson blocked Gerald Henderson's shot. Enes Kanter turned that play into a layup at the other end to put OKC up four with 10.1 left.
Reserve guard Nik Stauskas finished 13 points for the Sixers on 5-for-6 shooting.
