Simmons may sit as 76ers host Wizards (Nov 29, 2017)
PHILADELPHIA -- Ben Simmons, Philadelphia's outstanding rookie, will be a game-time decision because of a sprained right ankle when the 76ers play host to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night.
The Wizards, meanwhile, continue to be without point guard John Wall, a four-time All-Star.
Wall received a platelet-rich plasma injection in his left knee last week and was ruled out for two weeks at that point. He will be sitting out his third straight game Wednesday.
The Wizards (11-9) snapped a two-game losing streak with a 92-89 victory at Minnesota on Tuesday night. Otto Porter Jr. scored 22 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 25 seconds left.
"We need to get him more looks, as we know," coach Scott Brooks said afterward, according to the Wizards' team website. "It's well-documented. ... We have to get more looks for him in the fourth quarter. He came up big in the side out-of-bounds play."
Kelly Oubre Jr. added 16 points off the bench, and two other reserves, Jodie Meeks and Mike Scott, added 12 apiece for Washington, which won for just the second time in six games.
Washington enjoyed a 49-11 advantage in bench scoring.
"They came in and played well for us," Porter said of the Wizards' reserves. "They gave us great energy. We kind of fed off that energy in the second half."
Brooks called it "a good team win."
"We have to just keep working on being a better team as we play these games without John," he added. "Obviously we're not a better team, but we can be a better team ... the two weeks we don't have him."
Tim Frazier, who counts the Sixers among his former teams, has been starting in Wall's place, with Tomas Satoransky in reserve.
Simmons injured his ankle Monday in the fourth quarter of Philadelphia's 113-91 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, a game in which the Sixers (11-8) shot just 37.5 percent and missed 25 of 28 3-point attempts while seeing a three-game winning streak end.
"We didn't play well on either side of the ball," Sixers coach Brett Brown said. "We give them credit, but we go away feeling like this is not who we are."
Brown dismissed his team's errant long-range shooting as being "one of those nights," and insisted his players would learn from the loss. Joel Embiid, who led the Sixers with 30 points and 13 rebounds, agreed.
"I hate losing," he said, "but I think that's actually good we got our (butts) kicked, so we can go back, learn and know that we can't take any days off. We can't feel comfortable and we've just got to keep working hard and keep getting better."
The Sixers will conclude a season-high, six-game homestand on Wednesday, having won three of the first five games. They continue to be without point guard Markelle Fultz, the top pick in this year's draft. He has missed the past 14 games with a shoulder injury. Guard/forward Justin Anderson (shin splints) and guard/forward Nik Stauskas (ankle sprain) are also out for Philadelphia.
