Shorthanded Sixers can now add VJ Edgecombe to list of injuries

These are not the best of times for the Sixers.

Joel Embiid will be reevaluated following Wednesday's game against the Utah Jazz to see how his strained right oblique is progressing. Paul George has 11 games remaining on his suspension. Kelly Oubre Jr. will miss his second consecutive game with an illness. And now, rookie VJ Edgecombe will miss the game with the Jazz due to a lumbar contusion after taking a hard spill while his shot was getting blocked on Tuesday against the San Antonio Spurs.

Following Wednesday's game, the Sixers won't play again until Saturday, which could be ample time for Edgecombe and Oubre to recover. Word on where Embiid is should come in the days preceding the next game in Atlanta.

It's been a tough time for the team with shuffling lineups while facing two of the tougher teams in the league the past two games in the Boston Celtics and Spurs. While Utah (18-43) doesn't present the same problems as the previous opponents, the Sixers have their own with the unavailable players.

"I feel really bad for him," said coach Nick Nurse of Embiid. "I know you guys are aware of this because a lot of people say it, he's doing everything he possibly can to play games. It was just another area that he's got to treat and rehab and get better. The only positive I can see about it is hopefully the rest of the stuff can also heal up while this is healing up. Just unlucky. I feel bad and we were starting to roll there with him playing consecutive games. So we're back in the same situation we were. We've got to pick off some of these games and then get him back as soon as possible."

Embiid was hurt during a scrum in Thursday's win over the Miami Heat. He continued to play through the strain, even hitting a clutch three-pointer late in the game. He was scheduled to miss the next three games, and then get updated. 

While serving his suspension, George has been a visible participant with the team during non-game activities. His coach is pleased with where he is and counting on his starting forward to be ready once the ban is lifted.

"He's doing really good," said Nurse. "He's really involved in everything we're doing - practices, shootarounds, film sessions, up until game day. From that standpoint, he's also doing a lot of individual workouts, too. We're trying to get to the point, get him to a point, first of all get him involved. Trying to get his veteran leadership, even though he's not getting on the court and do stuff. He can still help these guys, which he's doing a decent job of. Just really want to keep him sharp and push him really hard physically to be as sharp as possible when he returns." 

In the meantime, Nurse will have to depend on the carousel of bench players that will be forced to play more minutes than they are accustomed to.