PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers snapped a three-game losing skid with a resounding home win over the Sacramento Kings. Joel Embiid, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Robert Covington all watched as Tobias Harris played a stellar game in a big home victory. Hopefully, each of them will be back in action for the next game.
76ers head coach Nick Nurse gave updates on each player, starting with Embiid before the game. The superstar's left knee has sidelined him for three games now.
“We still got it as day to day and we think that he's gonna be back in practice shortly, meaning he's gonna be playing shortly. So, hopefully that's the next game,” Nurse said. He responded to a follow-up question by saying that he expects Embiid back to start next week.
Nurse expressed optimism for Embiid playing against the Kings but he ended up getting ruled out the day before, so he's not out of the woods yet. However, his insistence that the 76ers' big man is day-to-day is a very good sign.
Oubre was expected to play against the Kings until less than an hour before tip-off, when he was ruled out.
“He's had a little bit of a toe issue but it hasn't held him out of anything leading up to the game. He went out there and did his warmup and kind of jammed it a little bit,” Nurse said after the game. “They tried to tape it and take him out there again and still wasn't good and they tried a different tape thing. It got ruled out at the end that it was too sore to play on tonight. They're not overly concerned with it. He has had it for a little bit but it just kind of flamed up in his work workout tonight.”
According to NBC Sports Philadelphia's Noah Levick, Oubre said he felt like he had turf toe following the 76ers' game on Wednesday but was still on track to play in this one. Being a late scratch doesn’t appear to be an indication that he will miss more time going forward.
Covington, due to a left knee injury of his own, has missed the last five games. Nurse said that he “has been on the court the last two days. I think that they're hoping everything's cool and that he can go full tilt on Sunday and be cleared to play.”
Following their return to the win column, the 76ers' next games are a home back-to-back. When they see the Houston Rockets on Monday afternoon and the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night, they could be back at full health.