Several Denver Nuggets Standouts Could Miss Matchup vs. 76ers

When the Philadelphia 76ers face the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night, the visitors could be missing a handful of players, airing out some of the hype in the matchup.

When Denver’s on the schedule, it’s no surprise that many fans of both sides look forward to the duel of the MVPs. With Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and Sixers big man Joel Embiid battling it out for the MVP award for the fourth straight season, the head-to-head battle always garners a ton of attention.

Unfortunately, the Nuggets could consider giving Jokic the night off. According to the team’s injury report, the star big man is dealing with a left hip strain, which leaves him questionable for the matchup. If Jokic can’t get cleared for action, he’ll miss his second game of the season.

The two-time MVP isn’t the only standout that’s in danger of missing Tuesday’s outing.

In fact, the Nuggets loaded up the injury report with key players.

The starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope saw his status downgraded to questionable as he deals with a Cervicothoracic strain. The high-flying forward Aaron Gordon is also considered questionable due to a right heel strain.

Michael Porter Jr. has yet to miss a matchup for the Nuggets this year, but he was recently considered to be day-to-day as he works on recovering from knee inflammation, a similar setback as Embiid’s. As a result, Porter is questionable on Tuesday.

Lastly, the Nuggets are unsure whether Jamal Murray will get the nod to play or not. As he deals with bilateral tibia inflammation, Murray is in danger of missing his first game since early December. After his lone absence on December 12, Murray appeared in 16 straight games for Denver. Throughout that stretch, he averaged 22 points and six assists while knocking down 39 percent of his threes.

The Nuggets are looking to improve their current win streak to three on Tuesday, while the Sixers are in a similar boat. The matchup might be in danger of losing plenty of its juice, considering the Nuggets’ crowded injury report, but they haven’t made any final calls on some of the standouts’ statuses just yet.