Jalen McDaniels Reportedly Expected to Miss Matchup vs. Cavaliers
The Philadelphia 76ers aren't expected to have a key reserve on the floor Wednesday night when they face the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Jalen McDaniels, the team’s backup wing, is reportedly planning to sit out hours leading up to tip-off. According to the Sixers, McDaniels is battling a hip contusion, which he suffered over the weekend.
As the Sixers hosted the Washington Wizards on Sunday night, McDaniels entered the matchup fully healthy. During the Sixers’ dominant win over the Wizards, McDaniels started dealing with hip pain after making contact with another player on offense.
McDaniels went to the locker room to get checked out early in the second quarter. When the Sixers and the Wizards started the second half, the Sixers ruled McDaniels out for the rest of the matchup.
After the game, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers didn’t have a definitive update on the veteran wing but made it clear that McDaniels wasn’t expected to be dealing with anything too serious.
When the Sixers returned to practice on Tuesday, Rivers reiterated that sentiment and was hopeful that McDaniels would play against the Cavaliers, although the forward missed practice.
“It’s nothing serious,” he said on Tuesday, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “We expect him to be ready for tomorrow, but we don’t know yet. … But there’s no way we were going to let him practice today. We didn’t do enough anyway today.”
McDaniels was reportedly not a participant in the Sixers’ Wednesday morning shootaround session. While McDaniels did put in some work, doing post-shootaround drills, his absence during shootaround was a sign that he could potentially get the night off.
According to a report from The Philadelphia Inquirer, McDaniels feels better but still feels like his hip is setting him back at this time. While he’s expected to go through pregame warmups and remains questionable for Wednesday’s game, all signs are pointing towards McDaniels getting a night off.
If that’s indeed the case, McDaniels will miss his first game with the Sixers since he suited up with the team for the first time on February 10.
The Sixers and the Cavs will tip-off at 7:30 PM ET.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
