Sixers' Shake Milton Likely Won't Play vs. Blazers on Thursday

Last week, Philadelphia 76ers veteran guard Shake Milton had an injury scare. As he drove to the basket early on in the win over the Charlotte Hornets, he hyperextended his knee. At the time, the injury looked severe as Milton was slow to get up and went straight back to the locker room.

Fortunately, Milton was just fine. “I was scared, I’ll tell you that," said Doc Rivers last week. "I thought it was his knee when he did, but they checked him out, the doctor checked him out, KJ came back and told me he was ready, and then Shake actually came to me to tell me he was ready. I got a kick out of that. I guess he was basically telling me to put him back in. So that tells me he was ready to go.”

Milton was obviously happy he avoided a serious setback as knee injuries tend to be tricky and often unavoidable even when players aren't making contact with others on the court. "Thank God it wasn’t [serious],” Milton said. “I went back to the back and checked it out; I felt okay, I was ready to play anyways, and I was good to go.”

The third-year guard appeared in the next few games for the Sixers as his knee was just fine. However, he had a similar injury scare this past Tuesday night against the Sacramento Kings. Once again, driving to the basket, Milton seemingly planted his foot on somebody else's foot, which caused his ankle to roll.

After staying down for a bit, visibly in pain, Milton walked off the floor as his night concluded. “I have no idea [what happened]," said Doc Rivers after the game. “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.”

Rivers was correct. It turns out Shake Milton is dealing with a left ankle sprain. And while he's not guaranteed to miss time, he will likely sit out Thursday night's game against the Portland Trail Blazers as he's listed as doubtful.

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