Where the Sixers stand with health and hopes

The Philadelphia 76ers are heading into the last 10 games of the regular season with a simple goal: get healthier and try to finish inside the top 6 in the Eastern Conference for an automatic playoff spot instead of the play-in. That would be nice. Less drama, more basketball.

Paul George is back this week

Paul George will return on Wednesday after serving a 25-game suspension for violating the league's anti-drug policy. So expect him back on the floor and ready to help right away.

Joel Embiid: slowly getting on the court

Joel Embiid has not played since Feb. 26 because of a right oblique strain. Coach Nick Nurse described Embiid's recent schedule: he was on the court for shootaround and then had a post-shootaround workout. The plan calls for a heavier session the following day and then a reassessment.

Nurse said: "He was on court again today. Had a decent workout again today as part of shootaround. Then had his workout after shootaround. We got another, I think what I would consider a heavier session tomorrow. Then we'll see where he's at."

Tyrese Maxey: finger tendon strain and a near-term check-in

Tyrese Maxey has been out since March 7 with a right finger tendon strain. He has mainly been practicing with his left hand, though he was spotted taking some shots with his right hand at a recent shootaround.

Nurse on Maxey: "Pretty good. He's working pretty hard. He's getting some decent workouts in. He's moving a lot. He is doing some workouts primarily left-handed. He has taken some shots right-handed. I believe he's got another evaluation here coming up this weekend or early next week. So, hopefully, we'll be at the 3-week mark and we'll see from there. I know that's kinda the minimum of the three weeks and we'll see where he is from there."

Bottom line

  • Paul George returns Wednesday after a 25-game suspension.
  • Joel Embiid is progressing through on-court workouts after a right oblique strain and will have a heavier session before the next evaluation.
  • Tyrese Maxey is approaching a planned re-evaluation near the three-week point for a right finger tendon strain and has started to use his right hand in limited fashion.

The team will try to tread water until its key players are back and healthy enough to mount a late-season push into the top 6.