Philly Sports Jabronis
By Max Rappaport, Sixers.com
For the past 10 days, Sixers fans have awaited word on the status of third-year combo guard Tony Wroten, who’s missed Philadelphia’s last five games due to a right knee injury. On Friday, clarity was provided, and they learned that the team will be without the 21-year-old for the foreseeable future.
Wroten has been diagnosed with a partial tear in his right ACL, an injury that will require surgery and will sideline him indefinitely. The tear occurred early in the fourth quarter of the Sixers’ January 13 home meeting with the Atlanta Hawks, while he defended guard Shelvin Mack.
Wroten had been averaging nearly 17 points and more than 5 rebounds per game prior to injuring his knee. Photo Credit – Philadelphia 76ers
“I don’t think there’s anybody else that could do what he did,” said head coach Brett Brown minutes after the announcement was made. “He was such a kamikaze, attacking, fearless, competitive player that the city just fell in love with.
“As a team, we have to take what he brought us in terms of speed and pushing the ball and remember that’s who we are.”
In Wroten’s absence, the Sixers are left with second-year man Michael Carter-Williams, 10-day signee Larry Drew II, and safety valve ballhandler JaKarr Sampson to play the lead guard position. But Brown says the team isn’t desperate to make a move to bolster their depth at this time.
“I don’t feel the need [to bring in another guard] right now,” he told reporters. “Some of that is because of Larry [Drew II]’s performance and just the overall desire to have available minutes to grow our current crop.”
“It obviously hurts. He was our leading scorer and losing a guy like him is tough,” said Michael Carter-Williams. “We’re going to miss his spark off the bench, definitely, and the energy he plays with.”
Brett Brown believes the team’s recent history with longterm injuries will help when it comes to helping Wroten navigate his recovery.
“We’ve had a lot of practice dealing with injured players, and he’ll reap the benefits of some of the things that we’ve learned,” he said. “We have to make sure that we help him stay active, in his mind and physically ready.”
Once the procedure is completed, Brown hopes that the team will be able to provide a more comprehensive timeline for his recovery.
