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76ers center Joel Embiid out at least one week with left shoulder sprain

Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid walks off the court after an NBA basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks, Monday, Feb. 24, 2020, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid will miss Thursday's game while evaluation continues on his shoulder. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with a left shoulder strain and will be re-evaluated in one week, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday night.

An MRI on his shoulder revealed that there was no structural damage.

Embiid collided with Cleveland Cavaliers center Ante Zizic in the first half of Wednesday’s game, with his left shoulder slamming into Zizic’s chest. He headed to the locker room after grimacing while shooting free throws.

The 76ers ruled him out with a shoulder sprain after he briefly returned to the bench, but then headed back to the locker room.

Embiid missed the 76ers 115-106 win against the New York Knicks on Thursday.

76ers without Embiid, Simmons

Philadelphia already got bad news this week when point guard Ben Simmons was diagnosed with a nerve impingement in his lower back. He’s out indefinitely with a re-evaluation scheduled in approximately two weeks. He re-aggravated the injury on Saturday night.

“It’s a painfully obvious bind,” 76ers coach Brett Brown said, via ESPN. “We’re missing two All-Stars. You yank that from the team and it’s painful.”

The Sixers (37-23) are in fifth place in the Eastern Conference.

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