Sixers' Shake Milton to Miss Fourth-Straight Game vs. Rockets

Help isn't on the way just yet for the Philadelphia 76ers' bench, which has been struggling as of late. While Sixers head coach Doc Rivers recently acknowledged that the primary backup point guard Shake Milton doesn't solve all of Philly's bench issues, his absence surely doesn't help them at all.

Unfortunately, he'll continue to miss additional time this week as Milton's already been ruled out of Wednesday night's game against the Houston Rockets. His absence on Wednesday will mark the fourth-straight game Milton will miss due to a sprained ankle.

Last Tuesday, the Sixers took on the Sacramento Kings for the first of four-straight road games. After checking into the game off the bench for roughly 20 minutes, Milton rolled his ankle as he stepped on the foot of his opponent while driving to the basket.

Milton left the court late in the game and wouldn't return. In the following matchup, the Sixers allowed Milton to sit out against the Portland Trail Blazers. Then, they wasted no time ruling him out on Saturday against the Phoenix Suns as well.

Although Milton was spotted during the pregame getting some shots up, Doc Rivers didn't hesitate to state publicly that Milton wasn't going to play at all for the rest of the trip, ruling him out for Monday's game against Utah two days in advance.

There was hope Milton would return on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets, but that won't be the case. On Tuesday night, the Sixers ruled Milton out against Houston. And as it stands, he remains day-to-day without a timeline set for his return.

Perhaps, the veteran guard gets back in the mix for Friday's matchup against the Chicago Bulls, but that's far from a guarantee. For the time being, the Sixers will likely increase Ben Simmons' minutes and allow Tyrese Maxey to get some playing time off the bench, filling in for Milton.

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

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