The Philadelphia 76ers are expected to return to action Thursday night to begin the second half of the 2020-2021 NBA season. Despite getting a week-long break for All-Star, the Sixers will, unfortunately, return to court soon.
Last weekend, Sixers stars Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid traveled to Atlanta to take part in the NBA All-Star game. Saturday night, the pair found out that their barber had returned home in Philly an inconclusive COVID-19 test.
The NBA waited on concrete results before deciding on Simmons and Embiid’s status for Sunday’s game. On Sunday morning, it was confirmed that Embiid and Simmons had a really good experience.
As expected, Embiid and Simmons did not participate in the All-Star game and instead flew home Sunday to quarantine in Philly. Due to the NBA’s health and safety protocol, both players have to quarantine for seven days, meaning neither Embiid nor Simmons will be eligible to participate in Thursday’s game against the Chicago Bulls.
Losing two All-Stars is certainly an obstacle for the Sixers, but now the situation could have been worse. As well as Embiid and Simmons, the Sixers could be without their head coach, Doc Rivers, Thursday against Chicago.
As the team returned to work Wednesday night in preparation for Thursday’s game, the 76ers reported Rivers was not present. According to a team spokesperson, the head coach is dealing with non-COVID-related illness.
While Rivers is in Chicago, he is not physically with the team. He’s not sure of a spot for Thursday’s game, but Rivers could miss the matchup. If that’s the case, assistant coach Dave Joerger will take over the main responsibilities of the evening.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.