ATLANTA — As the Philadelphia 76ers prepared for the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday evening, they would have to do battle without the services of Tyrese Maxey. The star guard is set to miss his second straight contest due to an illness and the Sixers will hope he can get back after it sooner rather than later.
Maxey played in the first 23 games of the season and is averaging a robust 31.5 points while carrying a heavy workload at 39.9 minutes per night. The Sixers lean on him as a leader both on and off the floor so coach Nick Nurse is hoping he can return soon after a few days of rest.
“We’re super concerned,” Nurse said before the contest with the Hawks. “We’re concerned because he’s sick and he wasn’t well enough to get on the floor here for a couple games. After Friday’s game, we thought he’d be at the plane to come with us, but didn’t make it.”
While Maxey wasn’t able to make the trip to Atlanta, Nurse did speak with him and it sounds like the 6-year guard out of Kentucky is going to be ready to go when the team returns home to get ready for practice.
“I talked to him last night and he said he’d see me at practice Tuesday,” Nurse added. “I said I’m not sure we’re practicing Tuesday, but I’ll be there. Me and you, man. I’ll see you there. It’s been a bit, but yeah. It is concerning, but again, he’s improving. Hopefully, it’ll get him to where he’s good enough to get back in action.”
As for Kelly Oubre Jr., there isn’t any new update on the versatile forward out of Kansas. He has not played since Nov. 14 against the Detroit Pistons when he initially suffered the injury.
“Again, he’s out there walking around a bit,” Nurse stated on Oubre. “He’s on the court a bit. There looks like some progress there. Just like you, I want him out there ASAP.”
After the matchup with the Hawks on Sunday, the Sixers will have another four days off before they take on the New York Knicks on the road on Friday.