WHATEVER THE NEWS IS
Here is the Sixers' complete initial injury report for Sunday's game, released on Saturday afternoon:
| Player | Injury | Status |
| Joel Embiid | left knee injury management | OUT |
| Paul George | left finger extensor tendon injury | OUT |
| Caleb Martin | right hip sprain | QUESTIONABLE |
| KJ Martin | left foot stress fracture | OUT |
| Andre Drummond | left toe injury recovery | QUESTIONABLE |
| Jared McCain | torn left meniscus | OUT |
Prior to the Sixers' loss to the Denver Nuggets in a thriller on Friday night, head coach Nick Nurse indicated that some sort of meaningful updates on the statuses of Embiid and George would be provided after the team's Saturday morning practice. But the team ultimately elected to hold an optional workout at its facility, which means no media availabilities were conducted. So, the injury designations of the two All-Stars represent the most substantial information we will have for the time being.
Embiid, 30, has missed 13 games since last appearing on Jan. 4. He has been absent for the last seven contests due to increased swelling in his left knee, which underwent surgery due to a torn meniscus last February. His first six absences during this stretch were caused by a left foot sprain, but the Sixers later said that the knee swelling had reappeared after Embiid conducted his first on-court workout following the healing of the foot sprain.
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The instability in Embiid's left knee, the foot sprain and a suspension have cost the former NBA MVP much of the season, as he has only appeared in 13 of the team's 47 games to date. After Embiid inked a three-year supermax extension over the summer which ties him to the team for a five-year period in which he will earn nearly $300 million, the season has gone about as disastrously as anyone could have feared.
George, 34, has played in 30 games, missing time due to two separate bone bruises in his left knee, brief groin and ankle ailments, and now the extensor tendon injury in his left pinky, which has kept him sidelined for three consecutive games after his early exit in the Sixers' Jan. 25 win over the Chicago Bulls.
Caleb Martin, who has missed 11 games in a row since his last appearance on Jan. 10, has been sidelined with what was initially listed as groin soreness but later developed into a hip sprain. Martin, who knocked down a career-high seven three-pointers to help the Sixers knock off the Celtics on Christmas Day, appeared on the verge of returning just a few days ago. He was upgraded to questionable in advance of Sixers-Kings on Wednesday, but then was ruled out. Martin was then listed as out on the initial injury report for Friday's game, and while Nurse said before the game that the tenacious wing has not experienced a specific setback, he is still struggling to change directions without feeling pain.
Drummond also suffered an injury on Dec. 23, spraining his left toe. On two occasions now, the veteran center has returned from an extended absence due to the injury and then gone back on the shelf. Nurse called the situation "just not good" earlier in the week, but it seems Drummond's return could be nearing.
KJ Martin, who has not played in a game since suffering a stress fracture in his foot on Dec. 23, appears to be getting closer. He has recently been able to participate in practice in a limited capacity and has undergone several on-court workouts prior to recent games. The 24-year-old was available for each of the Sixers' first 27 games of the season (24 appearances), but his absence on Friday marked 20 in a row during what was beginning to look like a breakout season.
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