No Tyrese Maxey. No Joel Embiid. No Paul George. No problem.
The Philadelphia 76ers' outlook for the rest of the season looks pretty bleak due to the injuries they are dealing with, and there is some genuine concern about how the team can stay afloat without Maxey, who is expected to be sidelined for at least another three weeks.
But on Tuesday night, Cameron Payne stepped up at the exact right time and proved that maybe the 76ers have some fight left in them after all.
In a 139-129 victory against the Memphis Grizzlies, Payne scored a career-high 32 points while shooting 9-for-10 from the field (including an absurd 8-for-8 mark from beyond the arc). He also dished out 10 assists, grabbed three rebounds, and recorded three steals and two blocks.
Is Payne ever going to have a game like this again? Highly unlikely. But it doesn't even matter.
If it weren't for Bam Adebayo's historic night, many would be talking about what the Tennessee native just did instead. The 76ers needed a spark like this. And moving forward, it will be worth monitoring how he plays and if this performance was just the beginning of what's to come for Philadelphia.
The 76ers need as many silver linings as possible the rest of the way
With roughly a month left in the season, the 76ers are 35-30. They own the No. 8 seed in the East but are just 7.5 games ahead of the No. 11 seed Milwaukee Bucks. And given that they are not even close to being at full health right now, this is a crucial stretch for them if they want to keep their playoff dreams alive.
As it stands, there is a chance that the 76ers are going to be without their All-Star guard for the rest of the regular season. Plus, it has already become clear that they are simply not a good team when Embiid (who just missed his seventh game in a row due to an oblique strain) isn't on the court.
Even so, they took home a much-needed win on Tuesday, in large part because of Payne's performance. Sure, it was against a Grizzlies team that had lost four in a row and 11 of its last 14 games heading into Tuesday, but at this point, every win counts for Philadelphia.
There is still a lot of basketball left to be played. Hopefully for the 76ers' sake, they can end the season on a high note and potentially make some serious noise in the playoffs.