The Philadelphia 76ers are hurting right now, and it doesn’t appear to be getting better soon.
Philadelphia had eight players listed on the injury report for Sunday’s loss at Milwaukee, and the situation could be similar when the Sixers play at the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night.
The Sixers, who have lost six in a row, won’t have Joel Embiid available as he deals with swelling in his left knee. Embiid, the 2022-23 MVP, isn’t on the three-game road trip that wraps up Tuesday night. He is second on the team in scoring at 24.4 points per game but has only played in 13 games this season.
Paul George has missed the last two games with a groin injury, Guerschon Yabusele has also missed two straight games with a knee injury and Andre Drummond sat out the loss to the Bucks with a toe injury. George, Yabusele and Drummond are all questionable on the injury report for the Denver game.
It has made things difficult for coach Nick Nurse, who has had to patch together lineups on a nightly basis.
“We’ll just figure it out day by day until we get some semblance of regular lineups,” said Nurse, who doesn’t have a player on the roster who has dressed for all 41 games.
Philadelphia does have its leading scorer playing well. Tyrese Maxey is averaging 26.4 points per game and also leads the team in assists (5.8) and steals (2.0). George is third in scoring at 17.2 ppg and Jared McCain is fourth with 15.3 ppg.
The Nuggets have surged after a slow start, winning six of their last seven and sweeping their trip through Miami and Orlando over the weekend.
Nikola Jokic continues to make a case for a fourth MVP award with arguably the best statistical season of his career. Jokic entered Monday ranked third in the NBA in scoring (30.1 points per game), third in rebounding (13.2) and second in assists (9.9). He also leads his team in steals with 1.8 per night.
He is the focal point of Denver’s offense, but the recent upswing has come with more production from guard Jamal Murray, who is averaging 20.1 points per game, ranking second on the Nuggets.
Murray averaged 32.3 points across three games before scoring 19 in the 113-100 win in Orlando on Sunday. Murray has received a lot of criticism for his slow start after signing a max contract in the offseason
“I’m totally ready for it,” Murray said. “That’s why I literally signed up for it.”
The team hasn’t lost faith in Murray, and he has picked up his scoring after dealing with some injuries early in the season.
“Jamal didn’t pay himself (52) million (per year),” coach Michael Malone said. “We did that as an organization because we believe in him.”
Following Jokic and Murray, Michael Porter Jr. is averaging 18.2 ppg, Christian Braun is at 13.8 and Aaron Gordon is scoring 13.3 per contest.
The Nuggets and 76ers will meet again Jan. 31 in Philadelphia.
–Field Level Media
