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Philadelphia 76ers: Wilson Chandler expects to return soon

PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 21: Wilson Chandler #22 of the Philadelphia 76ers poses for a portrait at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 21, 2018. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 21: Wilson Chandler #22 of the Philadelphia 76ers poses for a portrait at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 21, 2018. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

It should come as a relief to the Philadelphia 76ers, the veteran combo forward Wilson Chandler is eyeing his return to the court in the near future.

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown has had to deal with a shallow bench to begin the season. Injuries to Zhaire Smith, Wilson Chandler, Jerryd Bayless and Mike Muscala have hampered Brown’s ability to rely on the bench thus far in the early part of the regular season. However, Brown might have one of his key bench players return in the near future, according to Chris Crouse of HoopsRumors.

It’s great that Chandler feels close to returning. This timetable lines up with the one that Brown had given earlier in October. This also corresponds with the tweet that Serena Winters of NBC Sports made, stating that Chandler will be evaluated before the Sixers game against the Charlotte Hornets.

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If both Brown’s and Chandler’s prediction of when the veteran is expected to return are to be trusted, then fans might see Chandler make his debut sometime around the weekend before Halloween. Winters’ tweet makes it appear that Chandler has a legit chance of returning to game action within the week.

Chandler would be a welcomed addition to a Philadelphia bench that, outside of J.J. Redick, has struggled to produce consistently. In the past, I wrote about what type of role and production fans should expect from the combo forward off the bench. Based on how the bench has performed thus fair, expect Chandler to become a secondary scoring option behind Redick once he returns to action.

The Sixers should be able to survive until Chandler’s approximate return date. He might be the second most important bench player for the Sixers, but he’s not the only injured Philly player that’s making progress.

Muscala is still not fully healed, but he is showing improvement with his injury as well, according to Winters. Winters did also report that Muscala won’t be back until he feels totally healed, so as of now there doesn’t seem to be a timeline for the big man to return. However If both come back around the same time, then the Sixers weak bench suddenly becomes one of the team’s biggest strengths.

This news about a potential return in the near future for Chandler should excite coach Brown and the rest of the Philadelphia 76ers organization, as well as their fans. Chandler’s potential return means Brown can rest his starters more and have a more traditional rotation coming off of the bench.