On a night Joel Embiid looked improved on his way to 35 points, and Tyrese Maxey returned from his hamstring injury but was limited (both with minutes and physically), the 76ers’ big 3 finally got on the court together. For six total minutes, the team shot 3-of-11 in that time and was +1.
Then injury struck again.
A minute into the third quarter, Paul George secured a rebound but banged knees with Memphis’ Desmond Bane in the process. George hobbled around for little bit, clearly in pain, before going straight to the locker room. He did not return with what the 76ers called a left knee hyperextension.
“It was a hyperextension, similar, to the preseason, same knee, I think…” 76ers head coach Nick Nurse said postgame, and it is the same knee. “They said it was similar to last time, which was a bone bruise.”
If it is the same as last time, the good news is that it means no structural damage. The bad news is that injury had George out weeks, from the end of the preseason through the first five games of the regular season.
This means the 76ers big 3 — the trio GM Daryl Morey upended the roster to get together — will not share the court again until December. Philadelphia’s top-heavy roster has floundered without its three stars, complete with the worst offense in the NBA.
Wednesday was another game the 76ers lost, this time despite the Grizzlies being without Ja Morant. Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 25 and Bane had 21 as Memphis earned the 117-111 victory.
That drops the 76ers to 2-12 on the season, the worst record in the NBA. Expectations that were sky-high for this team entering training camp could not be lower — even if they dig themselves out of this hole, their path through the playoffs now will be much more difficult. And there is no expectation they can stay healthy.
It’s a rough time to be a 76ers fan, and it’s going to be for a few more weeks. At least.
