76ers lose Cameron Payne to hamstring injury amid playoff chase originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Philadelphia 76ers are set to brace for quite the rough landing, as they look to steer clear of the NBA Play-In tournament, having to stay above the Toronto Raptors, who follow them closely in the standings, to do so.

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The Sixers have been struggling at the same time, whether it’s keeping former MVP and franchise cornerstone Joel Embiid on the court or just getting the team going, things haven’t been easy.

But it appears that things are set to get a bit tougher for the Eastern Conference side, as they’re set to lose veteran guard Cameron Payne for some time, who exited Saturday night’s match against the Detroit Pistons due to a right hamstring strain.

What’s the latest on Payne’s injury?

As reported by The Athletic’s Tony Jones, Payne underwent imaging of his leg, which confirmed a strain and is set to sideline him for the remainder of the regular season.

This is a certain loss for Philadelphia as the veteran guard has been rather productive since being signed in the middle of the season from the Serbian side Partizan-Belgrade. In his 22 appearances with the Sixers this season, Payne is averaging 7.4 points and 2.6 assists.

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Given the timing of the injury, Payne’s spot in the Sixers’ playoff hopes is now questionable, and it’s an atmosphere that he’s delivered for Philadelphia before, dropping 11 points in a must-win game against the New York Knicks in the opening round of the playoffs during his original stint in the City of Brotherly Love.

The one bright side about the situation is that Nick Nurse still has plenty of depth in the backcourt, with the likes of Quentin Grimes, Kelly Oubre Jr, Kyle Lowry, and MarJon Beauchamp still able to come off the bench and soak up the minutes of the aforementioned Payne.

The Sixers’ first match without Payne will come on Monday night, when they’re set to take on the San Antonio Spurs, with tip-off in the Lone Star State slated for 8:00 p.m. EST.

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