Joel Embiid, Paul George to miss Sixers’ NBA Cup matchup with Orlando Magic
The perennial All-Stars were scratched from the game on Tuesday afternoon.
The 76ers will be without Joel Embiid and Paul George when they face the Orlando Magic in Tuesday night’s NBA Cup game at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The perennial All-Stars were scratched from the game on Tuesday afternoon.
George is sidelined with a sprained right ankle. Meanwhile, Embiid will miss his eighth consecutive game because of knee injuries. The 2023 MVP was listed as questionable on Monday evening and Tuesday morning.
So what happened?
“Just not quite there yet [to play],” coach Nick Nurse said of Embiid before the game. “I mean, you guys know that we said yesterday that he practiced fully, and he participated in most, well, I don’t know, parts of the shootaround today, but just not quite there.”
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If Embiid’s still not quite ready, why did the Sixers list him as questionable?
“I guess I would say there was a chance he would be ready,” Nurse said. “I think that’s what we have to do. It was trending towards he was going to play.”
This contest will mark the seventh straight game Embiid has missed as the team manages the soreness in his right knee. He also missed the Sixers’ 111-108 home loss to the Detroit Pistons on Nov. 9 because he doesn’t play on back-to-back nights to rest his left knee.
Embiid, who has no structural damage to his right knee, had been listed as day to day. The 7-foot-2, 280-pounder has already missed 10 of the Sixers’ 16 games because of knee ailments. He is averaging 19.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.5 blocks in 23.3 minutes.
George injured his ankle in Sunday’s 127-117 loss to the Miami Heat. The nine-time All-Star had 10 points and five assists in his third game of the season. He missed the first 12 as he recovered from a left knee injury.
Nurse was asked if there was any additional information on George’s ankle that caused him to be downgraded from probable to out.
“Nope,” he said. “Just that it is reported soreness in the ankle after the game the other night. He has not been in anything since then, and we’re just trying to keep following up with that and see where he is.”
The 6-8, 220-pounder is averaging 13.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and one block in 22.0 minutes.
Nurse said the Sixers have yet to determine whether George will miss an extended period of time with the injury.
“I think we’re in the process of checking in to see what exactly is wrong and what the extent of it is,” he said. “We’ll, obviously, give you that when we have it.”
Two other starters, Kelly Oubre Jr. (sprained left knee) and VJ Edgecombe (left calf strain), and reserve center Adem Bona (sprained right ankle) will remain sidelined for Tuesday’s game.
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As a result, Tyrese Maxey and Dominick Barlow, who started the first two games in place of George, are the Sixers’ only available starters from the opening day lineup.
The Sixers (9-7) are hoping to secure their first cup victory. They’re 0-2 in East Group B after a 114-105 loss to the Pistons on Nov. 14 at Little Caesars Arena. The Magic (10-8, 2-0) are tied with the Pistons for first place in the group.