Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Grimes, Hartenstein, Horford

It remains unclear whether or not the Sixers will have Joel Embiid for the start of their second round playoff series but he’ll wear a brace around his right knee if he plays, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The superstar center is nursing a sprained lateral collateral ligament and didn’t practice on Tuesday.

“There really isn’t any update yet,” Sixers head coach Doc Rivers said. “We won’t know anything for at least another couple of days probably before we can move forward.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

• Knicks guard Quentin Grimes is questionable to play in Game 5 on Wednesday due to a right shoulder contusion, the team’s PR department tweets. The 2021 first-round pick is averaging just 3.7 points in the series against Cleveland.
• The Knicks are one win away from their first series victory in 10 years. With New York leading 3-1, center Isaiah Hartenstein says the team can’t get complacent and allow the Cavs to rally back in the series, Peter Botte of the New York Post writes.  “I was telling the guys before, we still have one more game to go,” he said. “And I think even if it’s 3-1, I’ve seen a lot of teams come back from that. So you have to approach it the same way. Take it game by game.”
• The Celtics are once again showing a burning desire to reach the Finals for the second straight season, Israel Gutierrez of ESPN writes. They feel a renewed sense of purpose in the playoffs. “Early in the year [the Finals defeat] was fuel, it really got us going,” big man Al Horford said. “We kind of got away from it a little bit. But now that we’re in the playoffs, we’re not addressing it as a group, but when we talk about it individually, it’s something that’s still there.”