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Shams Charania, ESPN
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star Tyrese Maxey is expected to miss a couple of weeks because of a right hamstring injury, sources told ESPN on Thursday.
A full evaluation is coming later Thursday, but the team is bracing for Maxey’s absence.
Maxey has typically wanted to play through every injury over the course of his career — particularly now as the team deals with ailments to All-Stars Joel Embiid and Paul George — but the Sixers will take a cautious approach to his new soft tissue injury.
However, Maxey exited Wednesday’s loss against the LA Clippers with the injury. He had 12 points in 32 minutes.
Maxey has been a bright spot for the Sixers, averaging 27.6 points per game. He has been playing a lot — leading the NBA in minutes per game (39.7) and miles traveled per game (3.1) this season. Only Luka Doncic has hoisted more shots this season.
But after Wednesday night’s loss to the Clippers, Philadelphia is only 1-6 and is tied with the Bucks for the worst record in the league. This is not how the Sixers envisioned the season with their new big three. In the past 25 years, only three teams have made the playoffs after a 1-6 or 0-7 start.
George played in his second game this season Wednesday after missing the beginning of the season with a knee injury. He had his best outing, with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting, seven rebounds and three steals in 24 minutes.
Embiid is expected to make his debut Tuesday. He has also been recovering from a knee injury but must serve a three-game suspension for an altercation with a reporter.
Because of injuries, Maxey and Embiid played in only 36 games together last season. Philadelphia went 29-7 in those games.