Getty Jalen McDaniels of the Philadelphia 76ers
Jalen McDaniels had to leave the Philadelphia 76ers game against the Washington Wizards on March 12 due to a hip contusion and did not return.
Jalen McDaniels has a right hip contusion. He will not return to tonight’s game against the Wizards.
After the game, Doc Rivers provided an update on McDaniels, believing that the hip issue would not a long-term problem for McDaniels.
“I don’t think it’s serious,” Rivers said, per Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “I think it’s a hip contusion, back, or something in that area, but I think he’ll be fine. It’s scary. It looked like he when he first hit, that that was a little scary bump, but it looks like he’ll be OK.”
Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer then provided an update on McDaniels’ health on March 14.
“The 76ers held Jalen McDaniels out of Tuesday’s practice as he recovers from a right hip contusion,” Pompey reported.
Rivers reassured that McDaniels’ injury is not an issue while talking with reporters after the Sixers’ practice, and he believes that the Sixers’ forward will be available in their next game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“It’s nothing serious we don’t think,” Rivers said, per Pompey. “We expect him to be ready for tomorrow [vs. the Cavs], but we don’t know yet. … But there’s no way we are going to let him practice today. We didn’t do enough anyway today.”
In 13 games with the Sixers, McDaniels is averaging 6.1 points and 3.5 rebounds while shooting 50% from the field. The Sixers have gone 10-3 in that span.
Joel Embiid & James Harden’s Thoughts on Crucial Stretch
Both Embiid and Harden talked about the upcoming road trip for the Sixers with Pompey, understanding how important it is to keep up their good play as they go on the road.
“We got to win those games,” Embiid said. “That’s a good test for the playoffs. You got to go out on the road and steal a couple. That’s our goal. Obviously, we’ve been good.
“We got a couple good tests coming up. So we just got to be ready and make sure everybody is on the same page.”
Harden believes they can keep up their winning ways away from home because of how well they’ve done in road games.
“We’ve been pretty solid on the road all year long,” Harden said, “so [it’s] one game at a time, and no matter who we’re playing, stick to what we do and try to be the best 76ers we can be.”
Georges Niang Praises P.J. Tucker
After the Sixers defeated the Wizards, Georges Niang praised P.J. Tucker for the impact he has on the Sixers despite it not showing up on the box score.
“He’s such a selfless player that he doesn’t care about that stuff,” Niang told Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “He had his glory, scoring or whatever you want to call it, but he finds excitement, happiness, in us winning and doing the little things that a lot of people aren’t willing to do.”
Niang then added how rare it is to find someone like Tucker in the NBA.
“You don’t find too many guys that are willing to do that,” Niang added while speaking with Carlin. “Especially, in the back half of their career and where they’ve had success doing things a certain way and he’s bought into that and continue to help us grow on that side of the ball and just continue to show us what it’s like to play championship basketball.”