Boston Celtics point guard Kemba Walker suffered a left thumb sprain during the first half of Thursday's game against the Philadelphia 76ers, but the injury is very minor and he was ruled available to return:

Indeed, Walker started the second half for the Celtics. He scored 13 points in the first quarter but was held scoreless in the second period.

Walker had previously missed Boston's first three games of January as he dealt with flu-like symptoms, and he played just under 18 minutes before getting ejected from Wednesday night's game against the San Antonio Spurs. Celtics head coach Brad Stevens alluded to a minutes restriction, but Boston are likely to extend Walker as he begins to feel healthier.

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The 29-year-old will inherently be tied to Kyrie Irving in light of Irving's recent tenure in Boston and subsequent decision to leave the Celtics for the Brooklyn Nets. Indeed, Walker somehow finds himself trailing Irving in the All-Star vote despite the fact that Irving has played just 11 games this year (via A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston):

Boston’s best shot at landing a starter remains Kemba Walker, who is currently third among Eastern Conference guards.

He’s currently behind ex-Celtic Kyrie Irving, whose 450-vote lead over Walker in the first returns has been extended.

The second round of voter returns shows that Irving has 1,351,997 votes compared to Walker’s 1,331,577 votes — a margin of about 20,000 votes.

The latest voting totals are likely to drive Celtics fans to the ballots.

In the meantime, they will hope Walker endures a more serious injury, as the offense has really struggled to score without him on the floor.