KJ Martin and Ricky Council IV combined to score 36 points, Tyrese Maxey turned in another dominant 2nd half and the Sixers earned a wire-to-wire win over the Pistons in Paul George’s return from injury.
The right ankle sprain Andre Drummond suffered on Saturday night will sideline him for at least the Sixers’ next three games.
Drummond hurt his ankle in the first quarter of the Sixers’ win over the Pistons when he made a tip-in and appeared to step on Tobias Harris’ foot. A team official said Monday that he’ll be re-evaluated this weekend. Before then, the Sixers will visit the Hornets on Tuesday night and host the Magic on both Wednesday and Friday.
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse turned to Adem Bona after Drummond’s injury in Detroit. The rookie did good work on short notice, posting four points, five rebounds and three blocks over 20 minutes.
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Guerschon Yabusele also continued to spend significant time at center. According to Cleaning the Glass, he’s played 77 percent of his minutes there so far. He had a lighter night Saturday, watching the final 17 minutes of the Sixers' blowout victory from the bench. The game prior, Yabusele logged an NBA career-high 43 minutes in an overtime defeat to the Rockets.
Yabusele, Jared McCain and Kelly Oubre Jr. are the only players to have appeared in every game for the 4-14 Sixers. Paul George returned from a left knee bone bruise against the Pistons, but Joel Embiid (left knee injury management/personal reasons), Kyle Lowry (right hip strain), Caleb Martin (upper back soreness) and Reggie Jackson (right knee soreness) were all out.
Embiid will remain sidelined against the Hornets, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompey.
Lowry, Jackson and Martin fully participated in the Sixers' practice Monday in Charlotte, per Sixers Wire's Ky Carlin. Those players were later listed as probable.
NBA
The Sixers' matchup with the Hornets will be an NBA Cup game, although both teams have already been eliminated from knockout round contention. The Sixers, who beat the Hornets in overtime on Nov. 10, will be looking for their first winning streak of the season.
