When the Philadelphia 76ers start working through their rotations against the Cleveland Cavaliers, there is a good chance they don't have the veteran center Adem Bona to roll out.
During the Sixers' recent victory over the Detroit Pistons, Bona suffered an injury that ended his night early. He was elbowed in the head while going for a rebound. 76ers head coach Nick Nurse later revealed to the media that Bona was dealing with a neck injury.
Once the 76ers released their official injury report on Thursday night, Bona's diagnosis was made clear. The third-year center is dealing with a cervical spine sprain. The Sixers didn't rule him out, but listed him as doubtful, meaning he will more than likely get the night off, leaving the Sixers with a difficult decision to make on the Joel Embiid front.
Higher stakes call for big gambles
The last thing the 76ers want to do is continue to take big gambles on Joel Embiid's availability and playing time. Keeping the superstar center as healthy as possible is a major key to the 76ers' success this year.
Considering the 76ers are already extremely thin at the center position, any setback places Embiid in a tough spot, since the Sixers have tried to implement a minutes restriction for the big man throughout the first few weeks of action.
In three out of his first five games, Embiid's minutes have been right around the 33-minute mark. He crossed it with a 36-minute run against the Milwaukee Bucks on October 24. He did it again when the Sixers visited the Indiana Pacers, clocking in for 38 minutes.
Last week, the Sixers managed to keep Embiid at the 33-minute mark against the New York Knicks for their first set of NBA Cup action, before giving him his second night off of the year. When Embiid returned to face the Chicago Bulls earlier this week, he played his shortest shift yet--checking in for 24 minutes. It was revealed that this was part of the plan.
That might've been the case against the Pistons, but the Bona setback sent Embiid back out on the floor in the second half to close out with 33 minutes of action. The Sixers might not have a choice but to let Embiid push past his restriction on Friday in Cleveland, unless the game is out of reach for either team.
The first time around, the Sixers had to generate a 29-point comeback win over the Cavs. That game featured 34 minutes of Embiid. With Bona likely out, the Sixers only have the combination of Jabari Walker, LeBron James, and Dean Wade to work with when Embiid is on the bench.
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