ATLANTA—The Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers faced off in Monday night’s match with several key players notably absent. Missing from the lineup were top-scoring point guards Trae Young from the Hawks and Tyrese Maxey from the 76ers, both critical contributors to their respective teams.
Coach Nick Nurse of the 76ers announced that his team would have only nine players available for the game. Additionally, the team revealed that forward Paul George would sit out both Monday’s game and the upcoming Wednesday match in Toronto due to soreness in his left groin. This marks Maxey’s fourth consecutive game on the sidelines. Kelly Oubre Jr., another regular starter for Philadelphia, also sat out due to a sprained right ankle.
On the Hawks’ side, Trae Young was held out of the game because of a left calf contusion. The team also missed the contributions of guard Caris LeVert, who was absent due to a sprained left middle finger. However, the Hawks did see forward Vit Krejci return to action, recovering from a lumbar fracture that had sidelined him for ten games.
Nurse reflected on the injury challenges facing the 76ers, who started the night positioned 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 22-41 record. “There’s no denying the disappointment you have and you have to face a lot,” he remarked before the tip-off. “The losing is hard. Trying to keep it all together is the main thing.”
