Joel Embiid is determined to find his rhythm amid a minutes restriction as he continues to manage his return to full fitness with the Philadelphia 76ers.

The 76ers have made a winning start to the NBA season, following up a narrow win over the Boston Celtics by beating the Charlotte Hornets 125-121 on Saturday to earn Nick Nurse his 300th regular-season win.

Only Tyrese Maxey (28) and Quentin Grimes (24) outscored Embiid, who finished with 20 points in his 20 minutes against Charlotte, with only two rebounds in their home opener.

However, he went 7-for-11 from the field, massively improving on his 1-for-9 shooting against the Celtics.

"The first game, it was more like get in the game slowly and figure it out," Embiid said.

"This one, it was more like, 'Well, I've only got 20 minutes'.

"The first game, I didn't fall down, and today I fell down like five times, because if I've only got that amount of minutes, if I don't make an impact, I'm not going to get a chance.

"I'd rather not be on a minutes restriction at all. But I'd rather get it out of the way. The longer I sit, if you play the shorter stints, you don't get in a rhythm."

300 & counting.

Congrats, coach Nurse! pic.twitter.com/bNHh7g6qYS

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 26, 2025

The Hornets, meanwhile, suffered an injury scare after forward Brandon Miller left early in the second quarter.

He managed just four points before he left with "left shoulder soreness", a blow for Charlotte after Miller, who had 25 points and seven assists in the season opener against the Brooklyn Nets, played only 27 games last season.

Coach Charles Lee was not sure when the injury occurred, but he remains hopeful that he will have Miller back at his disposal sooner rather than later.

"I really didn't [set the incident], to be honest," Lee said when asked what happened. "I turned around and saw he was asking for a sub.

"For a second, I thought maybe it was his wrist, and then later found out it was shoulder soreness.

"We're always worried about all of our guys. Any time a guy goes down, you're always worried about them, and you hope they are OK.

"I look forward to meeting up with the performance staff and finding out more."