We already knew that Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers were taking a longer view of his load management this offseason. We’re seeing it in practice with the news that the big man won’t play any preseason games this fall.

Depending on how you view life in general, you can read different things into this approach. The optimist might think, “Oh good, they’re finally getting serious about maximizing his chances of being healthy and available in April, May and June.” While the pessimist might say, “It’s October and Embiid hasn’t played a game yet and he’s already seeing doctors for updates on his knee. There is no way this guy will ever stay healthy enough for the Sixers to achieve their goals. Both sides certainly have some validity.

While we were aware of the preseason, we received further information on the long-term approach this morning, courtesy of an article from ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. First, Joel referenced another legendary big man, Tim Duncan, and reiterated something Daryl Morey said earlier this fall about no more back-to-backs for the star center.

“The 30-year-old Embiid is doing his part, arriving at training camp having lost 25 to 30 pounds with the goal of losing even more. Embiid points to how Hall of Fame big man Tim Duncan transformed his body as his career progressed and hopes a leaner version of himself can better handle the rigors of the NBA season. “It’s just the evolution of your body, and getting older and finding ways to stay afloat and be as dominant as I’ve always been,” he said.

And after playing in just 433 of 637 games over the past eight seasons — not including the first two years of his career, which were lost to foot injuries — Embiid’s days of playing back-to-back appear to be over.

“If I had to guess,” Embiid said, “I’d probably never play back-to-back for the rest of my career.”

“We’re going to be smart about it,” Morey said. “Part of being smart is that both Paul and Joel probably don’t play many back-to-backs, if any.”

Score one for the optimist camp with this news. People have long been calling on Embiid to slim down to put less strain on his joints. Back-to-backs have always been unnecessary for him, but especially now with the much-improved supporting cast and Andre Drummond around to soak up minutes in the middle. Sitting Embiid for that play is eminently rational.

However, the pessimistic camp also received what could be construed as a worrying update in the Bontemps piece:

“Embiid will also – reluctantly – continue to wear a brace on the left knee he injured in January. But while he has always felt uncomfortable wearing a face mask or brace at some point in his career, he said that won’t stop him from doing the things that made him one of the league’s most dominant forces have made.

“It’s the right thing to do, and the right thing that will give me the support for the rest of my career,” Embiid said. “For me it is a mental issue. I hated it. (But) I started saying to myself, ‘Okay, I have to do it, that’s the only way they’re going to let me play. …

“It might not look as good as it used to, with the shot or the pull-up and all that stuff, but it will still work.”

So Joel will feel more uncomfortable on the field and be slower and less effective in his movements. Even if this is a smart move in terms of injury prevention, it’s not good news that this is the reality we’re dealing with right now.

Ultimately, these seem like wise and overdue decisions by Embiid and the Sixers. We probably wish he had drawn these conclusions a year or two earlier. Could any of the recent injuries have been prevented? Either way, we have to live in the present and all parties involved seem to be on the same page when it comes to maximizing Philadelphia’s chance at a championship.