Sixers' Shake Milton to Miss Second-Straight Game on Saturday
Last week, Philadelphia 76ers backup guard Shake Milton had an injury scare as he hyperextended his knee against the Charlotte Hornets. As non-contact knee injuries always tend to result in the worst-case scenario, Milton seemingly dodged a bullet as he ended up right back in the game after getting checked out.
Almost exactly a week later, Milton suffered another injury in the matchup against the Sacramento Kings. Except for this time, it was his ankle. The injury occurred later on in the second half, so it wasn't shocking to see Milton remain on the bench for the rest of the game.
After the matchup, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers played it down as he didn't believe the veteran guard was dealing with anything too significant. “I have no idea [what happened]," Rivers said. “I think he turned the ball over. That’s the part I remember. The injury part, I don’t remember. I think he’s okay, honestly. He looked fine after the game, but we’ll see. My guess is it was ankle related, but I’m not sure.”
As it turns out, Milton sprained his ankle against the Kings earlier this week. While a sprain isn't anything to get too worried about as it's not season-threatening, it's still keeping Milton off the court for the time being.
On Thursday night, the Sixers traveled to Portland to face the Trail Blazers for the second time this year. Leading up to the game, Milton was listed as doubtful. As expected, the Sixers no longer delayed the inevitable and ruled the young guard out of the matchup.
For Saturday's game against the Phoenix Suns, the 76ers didn't even hesitate to rule Milton out. Per the late-night injury report on Friday, the Sixers don't intend to have Milton on board against the Suns, which is unfortunate considering how much the bench unit struggled without him on Thursday.
In the loss against the Blazers, the Sixers' bench was outscored by Portland 45-19. While Philly's 22-percent three-point shooting didn't do them any favors on Thursday, the bench unit hardly offered any help for the starters without Milton headlining the backups. As they're looking to bounce back after a tough four-point loss in Portland, the Sixers will need much more from their backups on Saturday as Milton won't be in the picture once again.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_
