Furkan Korkmaz, Jaden Springer Cleared vs. Atlanta Hawks

The Philadelphia 76ers have dealt with a notable amount of setbacks lately. As COVID-19 infected the league at a high rate over the last couple of weeks, the Sixers lost several players to the NBA's health and safety protocol.

However, the Sixers have dealt with their fair share of setbacks beyond COVID as well. Fortunately, everything is trending in the right direction for the Sixers.

Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey, who's missed the last two games with a quad contusion, has been cleared for action ahead of Philadelphia's matchup against the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night.

And although 76ers star center Joel Embiid played on Monday night against the Boston Celtics, the big man was on the injury report due to rib soreness leading up to the matchup. But that isn't the case for Thursday's game.

Two Others Cleared for Action

A little over a week ago, Sixers reserve Furkan Korkmaz was ruled out as he was battling a non-COVID illness. He missed last Wednesday's game against the Miami Heat and didn't travel with the Sixers to face off against the Brooklyn Nets.

While the 76ers never played their game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday night as the matchup was pushed back due to Philadelphia's lack of healthy players, Korkmaz was a factor in that decision as he was slated to miss his third-straight game.

When the Sixers faced the Boston Celtics on the road on Tuesday, Korkmaz missed three games in a row. However, he's cleared to make his return against the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, and he isn't alone.

Sixers rookie guard Jaden Springer has spent most of the 2021-2022 NBA season with Philly's G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. Late last week, though, the Sixers recalled the young guard. Despite joining the main roster for a stretch, Springer continued to sit out as he was in the NBA's concussion protocol.

It seems the rookie has officially been cleared at this point, though. As the Sixers released their injury report on Wednesday night, Springer was left off of it for the first time in a long time. Considering the Sixers will continue to miss their backup point guard Shake Milton on Thursday, there could be a chance Springer earns some playing time as Philadelphia continues to lack depth in the backcourt.

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