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The Utah Jazz and Philadelphia 76ers are set to bounce back as they go head-to-head on Thursday night in Salt Lake City. In their previous clash, the Jazz secured a 120-109 victory against a Sixers team without Joel Embiid on January 6th. Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton both delivered double-doubles, with Markkanen putting up 33 points and 13 rebounds, and Sexton contributing 22 points and 10 assists.
Embiid is set to sit out on Thursday, as reported by ESPN on Wednesday night. He’s expected to undergo an MRI on his left knee after sustaining an injury in the closing minutes of Tuesday’s 119-107 loss to the Golden State Warriors. The injury occurred when the Warriors’ Jonathan Kuminga accidentally fell on Embiid’s knee after the Sixers star went down to the court with four minutes left.
Embiid, a six-time All-Star center and the 2022-23 Most Valuable Player, leads the league with an impressive 35.3 scoring average. Additionally, he maintains averages of 11.3 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, and a career-high 5.7 assists.
No injuries have been reported for the Jazz, however, for the 76ers, Covington (knee injury) Embiid (knee injury), Melton (knee injury), and Morris (foot injury) will not be playing the game. Besides, Lofton (shoulder injury) and Maxey (ankle injury) could also miss out on the game.
Philadelphia is wrapping up a lengthy road trip with this being the fifth and last game. They’re currently on a four-game losing streak, having faced defeats in Indiana, Denver, Portland, and against Golden State.
Tyrese Maxey has been absent in the last three games due to a sprained left ankle. Additionally, Nicolas Batum was kept out on Tuesday as a precautionary measure due to tightness in his left hamstring.
The Jazz don’t have any major injuries to contend with, but they’ve cooled off after being the NBA’s hottest team in December and January.
Utah had a stellar stretch, winning 12 out of 14 games from December 21 to January 15, but things have shifted, and they’ve dropped five of their last seven. During their recent six-game road trip in the East, they only managed to beat the struggling Wizards and Hornets.
As they head into this game, the Jazz are coming off consecutive losses in New York, falling to the Brooklyn Nets (147-114) and the Knicks (118-103).
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