Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid know he is "not as dominant" as he can be after playing through a left knee problem during his team's 104-124 defeat by Boston Celtics.

Embiid scored just 15 points in 27 minutes of action and took nine shots, the fewest of any game this season in which he didn't leave early because of injury or ejection.

Injury problems have resulted in Embiid only playing in 18 of the 76ers' 55 outings this season and his side have the sixth-worst record in the NBA.

Embiid said: "The way I was playing a year ago is not the way I'm playing right now

"It sucks. I probably need to fix the problem, and then I'll be back at that level. It's hard to have trust when you're not yourself.

"I'm not as dominant as I was a couple of months ago, but that doesn't mean I still can't have a lot of impact on the game.

"Just me being out there, I think, helps a lot. My presence, my ability to attract double-teams, get guys more shots.

"It's just tough because you know you can do so much more. But there's no excuses. It's just the way it is. You just have to find ways to figure it out and get better."

final. @cryptocom pic.twitter.com/YCipVNt7LL

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) February 21, 2025

The Sixers are also dealing with injuries to Paul George, who won 17 points in 29 minutes during Thursday's defeat.

George confirmed afterwards he had been playing with pain-killing injections.

He said: "I'm hanging in there. I'm just trying to give this team everything I have.

"I'm taking some medicines to play through pain. I'm going to try to give everything I've got."