By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly Staff
The Philadelphia 76ers (2-3) will be back on their home court Saturday night for a match-up against Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Hornets (2-3). The Sixers went 0-2 on their road trip to face the undefeated Bucks and Pistons while the Hornets are coming off of two straight losses as well against the Raptors and Bulls.
Getting back to their home court will hopefully provide a boost for the struggling Sixers, but they could be without one of their key players on Saturday night. At the end of practice on Friday, big man Joel Embiid rolled his left ankle when stepping on a teammate's foot.
Embiid is off to a fast start this season, averaging 29.6 points, 12.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.4 blocks. He's only committed two turnovers per game, which is a great sign early on in the year. Due to the Sixers early season struggles, though, he is ranked second in the league in minutes. That is something that can't continue if they hope to keep him fresh throughout the majority of the year.
In other Sixers injury news, Jerryd Bayless (knee) and Zhaire Smith (foot) remain out. Wilson Chandler participated in some of practice on Friday, but has been ruled out against the Hornets.