Sixers' Georges Niang to Miss Wednesday's Game vs. Heat

The Philadelphia 76ers have joined the recent unfortunate trend of having players in the NBA's health and safety protocol again as the veteran reserve forward Georges Niang is ruled out on Wednesday night.

On Wednesday, the Sixers are set to host the Miami Heat for the first time this season. On Miami's end, they have several players out, including Jimmy Butler, Caleb Martin, Markieff Morris, and Victory Oladipo. 

Heading into the game, the Sixers had just two players on the injury report, with both Joel Embiid and Seth Curry listed as questionable. While all signs are beginning to point towards Embiid and Curry playing as they were participants at Wednesday morning's shootaround, the Sixers had to suddenly rule out Niang for the matchup against the Miami Heat.

In addition to Niang, the Sixers added Furkan Korkmaz to the injury report as he's dealing with an illness. While Korkmaz is feeling under the weather, a team official confirms that his setback is not COVID-19-related, which is a good sign.

As for Niang, he becomes the fifth member of the Sixers to miss games due to being entered into the health and safety protocol this year. Last month, Sixers forward Tobias Harris showed COVID symptoms, which led to him returning a positive test.

After Harris tested positive, several other members of the organization entered the protocol, too, including Sixers' second-year guard Isaiah Joe, third-year defensive standout Matisse Thybulle, and the four-time All-Star, Joel Embiid.

It's unclear how long Niang will be out for at this point. Typically, players are eligible to take several COVID-19 tests during a 24-hour span. If they are able to return negative tests, they can be cleared by the league to return. If not, they are forced to sit out for a minimum of ten days.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.