Despite clearing the NBA's concussion protocol, Joel Embiid was still not able to return for game two of the Philadelphia 76ers' first-round series with the Miami Heat on Monday night.The center has been sidelined since the end of March after undergoing surgery to repair a broken orbital bone following a collision with teammate Markelle Fultz.The Sixers had been performing well in his absence as they'd won every game without him but that changed last night as the Miami Heat stole home-court advantage and evened the series with a 113-103 victory.This snapped Philly's 17-game winning streak and was the first time they struggled without their All-Star.It led to frustration on Embiid's part as he was desperate to be out on the floor, telling ESPN's Ramona Shelburne on Sunday that there was a "pretty good chance" he'd return for game two or three.But having been kept out of the second clash with the Heat in a matter of days, the 24-year-old took to social media to lash out as he wrote a foul-mouthed post on his Instagram account."F-----g sick and tired of being babied," Embiid wrote.

When asked about his Instagram post, he told Shelburne: "I promised the city the playoffs and I'm not on the court and I may not be on Thursday either. I wish more than anything that I was out there. I just want the green light to play."

His anger appears to stem from the fact that he now looks unlikely to take to the floor on Thursday night when the series switches to Miami.

Head coach Brett Brown was asked to comment on Embiid's profane post and said he understands his star player's frustration.

"He just wants to play basketball. He wants to be with his team. He wants to play in front of the fans, and he wants to see this through," Brown said post-game.

"And when he's not able to do that, he gets frustrated, and we respect his frustration. It's born out of competitiveness, and it's born out of him wanting to be with his team."

Brown explained that there are still some medical hurdles that the Cameroonian needs to clear before he's able to return to the court.

He said earlier on Monday that Embiid still hasn't been cleared to take contact during workouts and that would be the next step in his recovery.

'The Process' averaged 22.9 points, 11.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 63 games in the regular season and is key to their hopes of securing a deep playoff run.

With the Heat now taking the upper hand in the matchup, the 76ers will hope that they can call on the services of their leading scorer soon and boost their chances of making it to the second round.

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