Friday night’s outing against the New York Knicks at home was one to forget for the Philadelphia 76ers. Unfortunately, they were issued more than just a 30-plus-point loss.
Heading into the fourth quarter of the matchup, Sixers forward Tobias Harris took an early trip to the locker room to get his ankle checked out. After further evaluation, the team ruled out the veteran guard for the remainder of the game.
The Sixers diagnosed Harris with ankle soreness. After the loss on Friday, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse addressed the state of Harris’s recent setback. While he remains unsure about Harris’s status for Saturday’s game, he offered some positive insight on the state of the forward.
“He kind of jammed his ankle,” Nurse explained. “X-rays and stuff were negative.”
Initial imaging showing no signs of a potential long-term setback is a good sign for Harris and the Sixers. The fact that he wasn’t ruled out for Saturday’s game against the Utah Jazz right away is also a positive development.
“He thinks he’s going to be questionable for tomorrow,” Nurse said of Harris. “I think he says it’s going to be determined on how he wakes up in the morning, but he thinks it’s a reasonable chance that he can play.” When Harris left the court on Friday night, he finished with a 24-minute shift. The veteran sharpshooter was struggling to have an offensive impact during that time, as he shot just 2-6 from the field, scoring five points.
Assuming Harris will be questionable for Philly’s matchup against Utah, he could potentially face his first absence of the year. Through Philly’s first 34 games of the season, Harris has been a participant, averaging 34 minutes on the floor. The Sixers will go head-to-head with the Jazz at 7:30 PM ET.
