Sixers' sprains, soreness and diminishing hope highlighted in 118-102 loss to Thunder

Keith Pompey, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Jan 14, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

PHILADELPHIA — Sprain and soreness.

Those two words were uttered Tuesday night to describe the condition of the Philadelphia 76ers. They could also describe the reaction of the team’s fans.

As the injuries and losses mount, the fan base is developing a wounded allegiance to the team unable to play with a healthy roster.

In the hour before tipoff against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night, the Sixers announced that Tyrese Maxey (sprained left hand), Paul George (right ankle soreness), and Caleb Martin (right groin soreness) would miss the game because of injuries.

The trio became the sixth, seventh and eighth players to not suit up for what under normal circumstances would have been an important game.

Tuesday’s game became a loss that was widely expected. The Thunder’s 118-102 victory was thus defined by the symptoms that have decelerated the mission.

Oklahoma City All-NBA guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored an effortless 32 points on an efficient 12-for-15 shooting. Meanwhile, Sixers two-way player Justin Edwards finished with a career-high 25 points while making four 3-pointers.

But Edwards' effort didn’t erase the two words have placed what was supposed to be championship-or-bust season on a tightrope: sprain and soreness.

The Sixers (15-23) have now lost three straight and six of their last eight games. And things won’t get any easier for the Eastern Conference’s 11th-place team in the foreseeable future. They entertain the East’s third-place New York Knicks on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN). The Sixers’ games against the Thunder (33-6) and Knicks (26-15) start a stretch in which 13 of the next 15 games are against opponents who have winning records.

A top six playoff seed could be out of the question if the Sixers crumble over the next couple of weeks. If the Sixers lose in the play-in tournament round or fail to qualify for it, this could go down as one of the most disappointing seasons in team history.

In addition to Maxey, George, and Martin, the Sixers were without Joel Embiid (sprained left foot), Andre Drummond (sprained left toe), Kyle Lowry (sprained right hip), KJ Martin (left foot stress reaction), and Jared McCain (left knee surgery).

Kelly Oubre Jr. was the only normal starter who played against the Thunder. He was joined by Ricky Council IV, Guerschon Yabusele, Eric Gordon, and Reggie Jackson.

The Sixers only had nine available players. They were so depleted that two-way player Pete Nance, who the Sixers re-signed Tuesday, saw first-half action. Unhappy with the star players being sidelined, the Sixers fans loudly booed the injury report before the start of the game. They also booed the home team several times during the game.

The Thunder led, 37-21, after one quarter. The Sixers made just 8 of 22 shots — including going 3 of 11 on 3-pointers. They also turned the ball over seven times and trailed by as many as 21 points.

The Sixers, however, kept battling. They even pulled within four points (91-87) after Gordon’s 3-pointer with 9 minutes, 54 seconds remaining. But the Thunder responded with a 20-5 run to put the game away.