Philadelphia 76ers Downgrade Young Star vs Brooklyn Nets

The Philadelphia 76ers have been dealing with an illness, which has affected multiple members of the roster.

Recently, the Sixers played multiple games without the All-Stars Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid as a result of illness. On Tuesday night, the rookie star VJ Edgecombe could be in the same boat.

The Sixers downgraded Edgecombe on the morning of the matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. He is listed as questionable for the clash against their Atlantic Division rival.

Along with Edgecombe, the Sixers could be without Dominick Barlow, Quentin Grimes, and Joel Embiid.

Barlow and Grimes are both listed as questionable for the same reason. Embiid (knee injury management) is listed as probable, which is a decent indicator he’ll be able to suit up and take the court.

This season, Edgecombe has been one of the more reliable players on the Sixers in terms of availability. While he did have a three-game absence between November 23 and November 28, the rookie standout has held a key role in every other game this year, dating back to his debut in October.

Edgecombe’s most recent outing against the Dallas Mavericks included a 34-minute shift. He shot 47 percent from the field, scoring 26 points. Along with his scoring, the rookie came down with six rebounds and produced four assists. The Sixers defeated the Mavericks 121-114. 

A slight bump in minutes recently has helped Edgecombe boost his production. Seeing the court for nearly 40 minutes per game over the past five games, he’s been posting averages of 22.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.6 assists. 

The rookie has been efficient from the field during that stretch, knocking down 48 percent of his shots from the field and drilling 42 percent of his attempts from three (7.0 attempts per game).

The Sixers are slated to host the Nets for a 7 PM ET tip on Tuesday night. Sitting in the Eastern Conference’s fourth seed, Philadelphia is trailing the Boston Celtics by one game.