CAMDEN, N.J. — Robert Covington will not return soon for the Sixers.
The 33-year-old forward “will be re-evaluated in approximately three to four weeks,” a Sixers official said Wednesday.
Covington has “received treatment over the past three weeks to address inflammation and bone bruising in his left knee,” per the official. He’s missed the Sixers’ past 10 games.
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Sixers head coach Nick Nurse has indicated that Covington’s experienced on-and-off swelling in his knee. Last Thursday, Nurse said the swelling had recently dissipated and he thought Covington might be nearing a return.
“He is doing a lot of stuff now, so I would say it should be right around the corner,” Nurse said last week. “We’re hoping to get a good eval after this trip, and hopefully he’ll be ready to go by then. That’s hopeful.”
That evaluation evidently did not suggest Covington was on a promising path.
Covington has played 26 games in his second stint with the Sixers. He’s averaged 16.1 minutes and posted 4.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals per contest. As usual, he’s ranked highly in steal, block and deflection rates.
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The Sixers offered a more positive update Wednesday on De’Anthony Melton, saying the combo guard “has completed an offloading program and will now begin ramping up to play.” He’ll travel on the Sixers’ upcoming five-game road trip and be re-evaluated in approximately one week, per the team.
Melton has been sidelined by a lingering back injury that the Sixers have classified as a “lumbar spine stress response.”
The other four Sixers to sit out Joel Embiid’s 70-point performance Monday in a victory vs, the Spurs were Patrick Beverley (illness), Marcus Morris Sr. (left foot plantar fasciitis), Jaden Springer (right ankle tendinitis) and Mo Bamba (right knee inflammation).
“Marcus Morris, Pat, Jaden Springer were all in practice today,” Nurse said. “Mo did some individual work. Melt is getting ready to do some as well. So those guys are not ready, but the rest of them should be OK by tomorrow (against the Pacers), barring anything else.”