The NBA playoffs have been a challenging time for many different teams, and the Philadelphia 76ers are no exception. They could be the eliminated Los Angeles Lakers, the Phoenix Suns, or the New Orleans Pelicans, for example. However, it feels like the 76ers have dealt with more injuries than the Milwaukee Bucks.
One set of injuries we weren’t expecting were the head coaching ones. First was the Minnesota Timberwolves head coach, and next up is the Philadelphia 76ers head coach, Nick Nurse. We’ll just summarize it like this… Nick Nurse won’t be giving any of his players the thumbs-up anytime soon.
Another One Bites the Dust
Anger management was not a strong suit for head coach Nick Nurse last night. He felt so passionately about what he felt was a bad call that the head coach slammed his hand down and injured his thumb. Let’s get a feelings wheel for Nick Nurse.
In the kind of fate that seems to have befallen the 76ers this off-season, Nurse couldn’t have a “mantrum” without the sky falling as well. It’s unclear if the thumb injury is a strain or a fracture, but either way, it’s a pain in the rear for a team that didn’t need any more problems.
The Philadelphia 76ers Playoff Run So Far
Things have not been easy for the 76ers so far in the playoffs. They avoided elimination after they crawled their way to a jaw-dropping win against the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.
With the kind of tenacity they showed yesterday, the sky is literally the limit for the Philadelphia 76ers. Considering Joel Embiid has played through Bell’s palsy and a lagging injury to his knee, Philadelphia has literally crawled their way to their rightful place in the 2024 NBA playoffs.
Can they keep up the performance for another game against the Knicks on Thursday night at 9 PM, with four seconds of recovery time? With Maxey and Embiid, anything is possible.
What Does This Injury Mean For the Philadelphia 76ers?
So far, it’s unclear what effect Nick Nurse’s injury will have on the Philadelphia 76ers overall. He was unable to draw up plays for the second half of the game because he couldn’t grip the marker. Fans have pointed out, though, that it’s unclear how much Nurse actually draws up plays anyway.
Nurse could likely work around a minor thumb injury with some adjustments. A thumb brace could help, for example. Fine motor skills are not a requirement for writing plays with a marker on a board. He could also tell one of his assistants what to write on the board, possibly. Nick Nurse is still quite capable of safely being on the sidelines with a thumb injury.
