The Philadelphia 76ers have returned to being a Playoff-caliber team after a stunning 24-58 season last year, which landed them as the No. 13 seed in the Eastern Conference. This year, they’re 34-29 on the season and currently No. 8. They’re hoping to secure a top-six spot and avoid the Play-In Tournament, but recent setbacks might make it harder for the franchise coached by Nick Nurse.
Despite multiple absences from their core stars, coach Nurse has led the team to 34 wins. They’re currently expected to be without Joel Embiid for another four games with an oblique injury, while Paul George is still 10 games away from completing his 25-game suspension for a violation of the NBA’s drug policy.
This has led to a huge load on 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey, who is averaging the most minutes per game (38.3) in the NBA this season.
During their 125-116 loss to the Atlanta Hawks, the 76ers seemingly lost Maxey to injury in the closing moments after the guard collided with teammate Adem Bona. He was visibly uncomfortable as a wrist injury rendered him unable to finish the game. Coach Nurse addressed the media after this unfortunate moment, with rumors of an absence growing.
“Obviously, it’s huge, right? Especially, with what we got going on right now, with some of the guys out, and obviously, he’s just another key player, but we’ll see. We’ll see. I won’t make any judgments or think about that until we find out for sure.”
“You don’t want any of that stuff to happen. Guys do get hit on the hands quite a bit, and jammed fingers and all kinds of stuff. So, let’s hope that’s what it is.”
The Athletic’s Tony Jones confirmed that the 76ers will do additional testing on Maxey’s finger on Sunday morning, so an update should be made available at some point before the weekend ends.
This is a blow for the 76ers, with Maxey averaging 29.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 6.7 assists this season. As previously mentioned, the team is currently without Embiid and George. Alongside them, standout rookie V.J. Edgecombe is expected to be out for a bit with a back injury.
The team has struggled with health throughout the season. Embiid has missed 30 games, George has missed 33 games, and even key rotation players like Kelly Oubre Jr. have missed 21 games over the year.
The 76ers are looking like they’re a step behind the top teams in the East, like the Detroit Pistons, Boston Celtics, and New York Knicks. But they’re part of a pretty big group of teams in the middle of the East who could be a hot streak away from making a deep Playoff run.
They’re currently five games behind the Cleveland Cavaliers, 1.5 games behind the Toronto Raptors, one game behind the Orlando Magic, and one game behind the Miami Heat.
Their margin to teams behind them, like the Atlanta Hawks (1.5 games) and Charlotte Hornets (2.5 games) is also slimming with every week as those two teams are looking to surge up the standings.
The East is precociously placed right now, and a Maxey absence could cause the 76ers to fall into the 9-10 Play-In game just a few weeks after challenging for the No. 4 seed. Hopefully, any absences are short-term, and the 76ers can look forward to the expected returns of Embiid and George over the next few weeks.
If Maxey does wind up missing games, his absence should lead to a greater roles for Cameron Payne and Quentin Grimes for the 76ers’ back-to-back against the Cavaliers and Memphis Grizzlies on Monday and Tuesday.
