Sixers' Carter-Williams listed as day-to-day due to knee infection

SIXERS ROOKIE guard Michael Carter-Williams' 3-day hospital stay ended this weekend and he was with his teammates during their shootaround yesterday morning as they prepared for last night's game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

He did not participate in drills, and it appears doubtful he will play in the near future. He sat out his third consecutive game during last night's 94-83 loss, as he tries to recover from an infection in his right knee.

Carter-Williams was admitted to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania on Thursday. He was released Sunday after missing games against Charlotte and Denver.

"It was getting real red and the swelling was increasing," MCW said of the condition of his knee on Thursday. "It was pretty scary. I don't remember the initial swelling, but I did bang it again in the Orlando game [on Dec. 3]."

In that game, a win over the Magic, MCW collected the first triple-double of his career with 27 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. It was after that game he experienced more swelling and soreness.

He is officially listed as day-to-day. He was walking with a noticeable limp at the practice facility yesterday morning, sat on the bench last night and coach Brett Brown said before the game that Carter-Williams will travel with the team when it leaves today for games tomorrow in Minnesota and Friday in Toronto. With their loss to the Clippers, the Sixers fell to 1-6 without MCW.

"I'm just going day-to-day,'' said Carter-Williams, who is averaging 17.7 points, 7.3 assists and 5.8 rebounds. "I don't know when I'm going to be back. When everyone says it's OK for me to be back [that's when]. I want to play all the time. When I was in the hospital I wished I was out there playing. I do play through a lot of pain but the smart thing to do is to get the OK from everybody first until I play. I'm just going day-to-day. I'm still in some pain.

"It's a little sore. But it's a lot better than before. I got some medication [antibiotics] so that's really working. It was getting better and then getting worse. The infection was spreading. I could see it all going down, the swelling is going down, there's no more redness. It's definitely getting better."

Carter-Williams said he doesn't know how he got the infection. He said he had a cut below his knee not long ago, but that appeared to heal. To him and the team, the important thing is how long it will take to heal.

The latest rumor involving the Sixers is Thaddeus Young going to Houston for Omer Asik. While that move alone wouldn't seem to be good for the future of the Sixers - which is where they're looking - you can't rule anything out this season.

"It is what it is," said Young. "I'm just taking it day by day, not worrying about a trade or anything like that. It's a business, if it happens, it happens. I'd just have to live with it and keep moving on. It's not hard to keep focused at all. It's part of the game. It's basketball, this is our job, this is how we make our money, this is how we feed our families and at the end of the day it is what it is if it happens. I love Philly and I want to continue being here. If they see fit to trade then, hey, I'll have to move on."

After being released by the Sixers last season, the uncertainty of his future is what made Maalik Wayns hesitant. The Roman Catholic and Villanova product had never lived outside of Philadelphia and now he was taking up residency across the country in Los Angeles as a member of the Clippers. He appeared in six games for them last season and forged a close bond with star guard Chris Paul. Now, after tearing a meniscus before the season, he's is trying to get to 100 percent.

"I'd never left [Philly] before, but I got to LA and they all took me in like a little brother and it's been great," Wayns said. "I'm not 100 percent but I'm getting closer. It's been about 5 to 6 weeks so I've got a couple of weeks left. It's just overall strength and quickness that I have to get back. I'm working on it."

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