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At the tail end of a year that we'd all like to forget, at the very end of a contest we'd all like to forget, it finally happened.
The Philadelphia 76ers won their ninth game of the 2015-16 season.
It had been more than a month since the Sixers had left the building with a W (which, ironically enough, was a Feburary 6 home win against the Brooklyn Nets), but it felt like far longer. Nevertheless, the victory ensures that the 76ers won't set a new (low) bar for futility this season, and their chance to completely Eurostep out of the record books begins tonight when they face the Detroit Pistons.
65 games in, Brett Brown's 9-56 crew has yet to string together back-to-back wins. They'll have their work cut out for them if they can manage to pull it off tonight, especially in light of the circumstances surrounding Friday's win.
Three players left the Brooklyn game early with injuries, the scariest of which occurred when Robert Covington was accidentally struck in the head by Jerami Grant's foot during a wild sequence under the basket. According to Spike Eskin of SportsRadio 94 WIP, RoCo has been released from the hospital and has entered the league's concussion protocol.
No update has been issued yet on Grant (concussion) or Richaun Holmes (Achilles), but it's a good bet that neither of them will suit up tonight. Unless a miracle happens, expect the Sixers to try out their 31st different starting lineup of the season.
So, with Jahlil Okafor out for the rest of the year (torn meniscus), expect a healthy diet of Carl Landry and Elton Brand against the Pistons: A team planted firmly at the edge of the Eastern Conference playoff race. And following a 15-point loss to the Charlotte Hornets last night, Detroit comes into Philadelphia with a chip on its shoulder and a chance to sweep the season series against the Sixers.
Only 17 more games left, kids - we can do this. RoCo, Jerami and Rich Homie Chaun - get well soon, fellas.
Also... while you're watching the game, be sure to fire up the latest episode of the Rights To Ricky Sanchez podcast where they discuss Covington's injury, Jah's diagnosis and lots more...
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