76ers Injury Report: Will De’Anthony Melton Remain Absent vs. Mavs?
As the Philadelphia 76ers wrapped up their five-game road trip last week, the team’s starting guard, De’Anthony Melton, hoped to take the court when the team returned home.
On Saturday, the Sixers faced the Brooklyn Nets at the Wells Fargo Center. Once again, Melton was ruled out of the matchup due to a lumbar spine injury.
As the veteran guard worked his way back onto the court for workouts while the team was on the road, he felt he was progressing in a positive direction. According to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Keith Pompey, Melton was targeting a potential return in Monday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks.
We now know that won’t be the case, though.
Melton Misses Another Matchup
According to the Sixers’ injury report, Melton has been ruled out for Monday’s game against Dallas. With that upcoming absence, he will miss his 12th game in a row.
The last time Melton competed for the Sixers was on January 12, when Philly hosted the Sacramento Kings. During that matchup, Melton checked in for 25 minutes. He struggled on the offensive end of the floor, knocking down just two of his nine shots from the field to score six points.
Lately, the Sixers have struggled with health. Along with Melton, they’ve missed key names such as Robert Covington, Nic Batum, and, most recently, Joel Embiid.
Since the Sixers fired up their five-game road trip last week, they’ve struggled while shorthanded. Aside from the three-point victory against the Utah Jazz to conclude the trip, the Sixers lost the remaining four games. When they returned home to face the Nets on Saturday, they collected their fifth loss in six games.
The road won’t get any easier on Monday, as the Sixers continue to find themselves shorthanded while hosting a 26-23 Mavericks team that is getting healthier.
