During the Philadelphia 76ers win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night, starting guard/forward Ben Simmons left the game relatively early due to what looked like a knee injury. With speculation swirling all over social media regarding what the injury could be, we received some clarification from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
“Subluxation of the left knee cap” is just a fancy way of saying Simmons slightly dislocated his knee cap. Hopkins Medicine describes the injury as such, “the kneecap usually only slides partly out of the groove. This is known as a subluxation.”
Recovery time for this type of injury can vary pretty considerably. Some individuals have reported just a few weeks of rest and rehab is enough to heal the issue, whereas others have claimed multiple months of rehab were needed to get back to an athletic condition. It’s important to note that there was no ligament damage found in Simmons’ knee, which is definitely good news.
Sixers Head Coach Brett Brown said the team has been “coming to grips with news they received” during a press Zoom call this afternoon, and the Sixers have remained insistent they don’t know long Simmons will be out for.
Brett also went on to say, “There is a disappointment. I think the uncertainty is there. He really invested time during the whole pandemic to play again“, which definitely doesn’t scream optimism about the situation.
Obviously, this is a monumental loss for the 76ers. Simmons is coming off his second consecutive All-Star season, and had elevated his defensive capabilities to that of a DPOY candidate. The Sixers were just starting to adjust to him playing more off-the-ball as they geared up for what was hoped to be a deep playoff run.
With Simmons now out for the foreseeable future, you’ll likely see Al Horford slide back into the starting five. Shake Milton will continue to operate starting point guard duties and we could see an increased ball-handling role given to Josh Richardson.
All in all, 2020 just keeps on getting worse.
Mandatory Credit: Ashley Landis/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports
