The Philadelphia 76ers chose the cautious route with LeBron James on Thursday, and the decision fit the bigger picture they’ve had in mind all along.
James was listed as questionable because of sciatica management, but he was on the floor for the team’s morning shootaround and took part in the session. That was encouraging, especially after he and Joel Embiid both had minor scares against the Boston Celtics earlier in the week.
Embiid turned his ankle before halftime and limped to the locker room at the break, while James was hit in the face and stayed down for a moment. Neither player picked up a new setback, and both finished that game without any fresh injury designation.
Still, the 76ers didn’t wait around. They ruled James out well before tipoff against the Toronto Raptors, and the move was tied to rest rather than any new issue.
The medical staff made the call, and Nick Nurse pointed to the bigger picture when asked about the absence. As he put it, the “long-term picture” is the priority.
At 41, James’ workload is being handled carefully, and the Sixers clearly don’t want to push him into a problem by asking for too much in early November. The expectation from the start was that there would be planned absences, and while back-to-backs may be off the table for James this season, this wasn’t just about a quick turnaround. Philadelphia doesn’t play again until Sunday afternoon, giving him a longer stretch to recover.
That break comes after a demanding run last week. The Sixers opened a three-game road trip in Detroit, where James nearly had a triple-double in 33 minutes with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists. He then had a rough night in his home state against the Cleveland Cavaliers, bounced back against the Chicago Bulls, and struggled again versus the Boston Celtics at home.
Now he gets at least four days off, and the Sixers are banking on that rest helping him reset after a busy stretch.
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