March 04, 2025
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
What is Tyrese Maxey's status for the Sixers' road contest against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night?
By the time Sixers head coach Nick Nurse had completed his postgame press conference after Monday night's loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, it was clear that the Sixers would have a lengthy injury report by the time they would arrive in Minnesota for a Tuesday night battle in Minnesota.
That is indeed the case. Here is the team's initial injury report issued a handful of hours before tip-off, excluding three players out for the remainder of the season (Joel Embiid, Eric Gordon and Jared McCain):
| Player | Injury | Status |
| Tyrese Maxey | lower back sprain | OUT |
| Paul George | groin soreness | QUESTIONABLE |
| Justin Edwards | ankle sprain | QUESTIONABLE |
| Quentin Grimes | bicep soreness | QUESTIONABLE |
| Kelly Oubre Jr. | illness | PROBABLE |
| Kyle Lowry | hip injury management | OUT |
| Jalen Hood-Schifino | two-way | OUT |
While Grimes' apparent bicep soreness is news, we do know about the other situations with the help of Nurse's comments before and after Monday's game:
• Maxey has assumed a massive workload of late -- both in terms of minutes and on-court responsibilities -- and took a hard fall on his back midway through the third quarter on Monday. Maxey, who has recently been playing through a finger sprain which has drastically impacted his shooting splits, was ruled out for the remainder of the game with a back contusion, which is now listed as a sprain. Nurse said Maxey would be treated as day-to-day and travel to Minnesota.
• George missed Monday's game due to groin soreness, which Nurse said he began experiencing at halftime of a recent game -- likely Saturday's win over the Golden State Warriors -- and just was not improving. Nurse said after the game that George would travel to Minnesota.
• Oubre was a later addition to Monday's injury report, listed as questionable due to an illness which ended up sidelining him. Oubre has been the Sixers' most consistently available player this season, tied for the team lead in games played with Guerschon Yabusele (56) after his absence on Monday. Oubre and Maxey are tied for the most total minutes among all Sixers as well -- coincidentally, both of them have played exactly 1,960 minutes this season. Nurse said Oubre would travel to Minnesota.
• With about 70 seconds left in Monday's game, Edwards appeared to hurt an ankle. After the game, Nurse confirmed that Edwards has sprained his left ankle. Edwards suffered a sprain in the very same ankle in the team's first practice after the All-Star break last month and missed three consecutive games before returning. Nurse said Edwards would travel to Minnesota.
• Lowry has only appeared in 33 contests this season, and the overwhelming majority of his missed games have stemmed from issues with his right hip. Lowry has not played since Feb. 9, and given the Sixers' standing plus the fact that Lowry will turn 39 years old in three weeks from Tuesday, it is difficult to imagine him being rushed back onto the floor. There has not been any sort of timetable established as far as a potential return for Lowry goes. Nurse did not mention whether or not Lowry would travel to Minnesota, but the hometown veteran has generally accompanied the team on the road, even during his extended absences.
One noteworthy player not listed: two-way player Alex Reese, who signed with the Sixers on a two-year, two-way contract last month but has yet to spend time with the NBA club. Reese is expected to join the team in Minnesota and could be available for the first time as a Sixer.
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