Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons exited the first quarter of Saturday night's road game against the Milwaukee Bucks after irritating his lower back, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports. He did not return after finishing with five points in four minutes.

Philadelphia definitely missed the services of their star point guard as the Bucks bludgeoned the Sixers, 119-98.

The Sixers struggled mightily from the field and shot just 35 percent as a team. They definitely missed Simmons' ability to generate shots for his teammates and run the offense.

Simmons sat out Philly's previous game on Thursday due to tightness in his lower back. Obviously, he tried to give it ago on Saturday, but unfortunately, re-aggravated the injury.

While Ben Simmons has stayed relatively healthy throughout this season, it is possible that this back issue could keep him out for a number of games. Philadelphia should err on the side of caution with the former no. 1 overall pick as these kinds of injuries may linger if not handled properly.

However, Philadelphia does not have much room for error as they currently sit at 5th in the Eastern Conference and is 1.5 games behind the no. 4 seed Miami Heat. They will definitely need Simmons healthy if they want to nab homecourt advantage for the playoffs.

The Sixers have been a major disappointment as they have failed to come together as a team for the most part of the 2019-20 season. An early playoff exit may lead to some drastic changes in their roster and staff this upcoming summer.

NBA analysts are growing skeptical of whether Simmons and Joel Embiid can play alongside each other and be a championship caliber duo. The two stars could find themselves in trade rumors if Philadelphia doesn't make a deep push in the postseason.