The Sixers will have to keep waiting for all members of their star trio to be active.
A team official said Thursday night that an MRI confirmed All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey has a strained right hamstring. He'll be re-evaluated in approximately one week, according to the official.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported earlier Thursday that Maxey was expected to “miss a couple of weeks.” NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark confirmed that report.
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Maxey was ruled out in the fourth quarter of the Sixers’ loss Wednesday night to the Clippers with an injury the Sixers described at the time as “right hamstring soreness.” Even with that early departure, Maxey remains first in the NBA with 39.7 minutes per game. He’s averaged 27.6 points, 3.9 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.4 steals for the Sixers, who sit at 1-6 ahead of a Friday night matchup against the Lakers.
The Sixers are 26th in offensive rating and 28th in net rating. Paul George has played in two games after injuring his left knee during the preseason. Joel Embiid has appeared in zero. He has two games left to serve of an NBA suspension for shoving Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes last week in the Sixers’ home locker room.
Clearly, the team has seen sunnier times.
Without Maxey, the Sixers will presumably elevate rookie Jared McCain to a larger role. Excluding two-way contract players like Jeff Dowtin Jr., the other guards on the team's roster are veterans Kyle Lowry, Eric Gordon and Reggie Jackson.
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Lowry had been starting prior to George's return and is a logical candidate to replace Maxey as the Sixers' first-unit point guard, especially given their struggles so far to run cohesive, crisp half-court offense. The 38-year-old will do his best to organize the team and eat up some of the many minutes that usually go to Maxey.