One of the worst fears for the Philadelphia 76ers are coming to life as their All-Star point guard is suffering a back injury at the absolute worst time for this team.
Ben Simmons, who has missed two of Philadelphia’s first three games since the break and only played five minutes in another, has been diagnosed with a nerve impingement in his lower back and will be re-evaluated in two weeks which gives him a chance to return before the playoffs. This throws a wrench in everything Philadelphia wants to do in preparation for the playoffs as coach Brett Brown wants to nail down a consistent rotation for when the moment comes in the middle of April.
Tests on 76ers star Ben Simmons revealed he suffered nerve impingement in lower back and he will be re-evaluated in approximately two weeks, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 25, 2020
Simmons is averaging 16.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.2 assists as he is the engine that drives this machine in Philadelphia. He does so many different things on the offensive end of the floor in terms of setting everybody up and making sure they are in the right positions on the floor and on top of that, he is an elite defender.
The Sixers are currently the 5 seed in the Eastern Conference and they have 24 games left to position themselves to grab home-court advantage in Round 1. Considering their 9-20 road record, it would definitely be in their best interest to make sure they play at home where they are a dominant 27-2.
Without Simmons, that challenge just got a lot tougher. Especially with a four-game California trip coming up. [lawrence-related id=26492,26482,26473]