76ers
Kelly Oubre Jr. has been diagnosed with an LCL injury in his left knee after undergoing an MRI, per Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports.
He’ll miss Monday’s game against the Clippers, and the Sixers won’t offer a full update until he meets with specialists to determine severity.
It’s a tough break for Oubre, who has drawn praise from coach Nick Nurse for his defensive impact this season. He suffered the injury Friday in Detroit and didn’t return after halftime.
Oubre turns 30 next month and is in the final year of his deal, which pays him $8.4 million next season.
Meanwhile, Paul George (knee surgery recovery) and Joel Embiid (right knee soreness) were both full participants in Sunday’s practice, per Neubeck.
George was in a blue jersey, indicating he worked with rotation players, as noted by The Athletic’s Tony Jones.
Cavaliers
Donovan Mitchell had to play the role of late-game closer again, and the Cavaliers needed every bit of it.
He scored 14 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, lifting Cleveland to a 108-100 win over the Grizzlies on Saturday.
The Cavs don’t look totally like themselves without Darius Garland, but they’re 9-5 and finding ways to win.
“We’re going to go through ruts,” Mitchell told reporters. “Guys are in and out of the lineup. But we’ve still got to be that team.”
He added that the Cavs battled through “mental fatigue” and “mental funk” to finish this one.
It wasn’t pretty. The offense stalled for long stretches, similar to the loss against Toronto. The difference this time was the late push.
“We just kept going and we kept going,” Mitchell said. “It’s 14 games in. I wish we were a little bit ahead of that, but we’re not. We’ve got to be better.”
Evan Mobley responded after a quiet night with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Jarrett Allen added 16, and Sam Merrill scored 13.
Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said the defense saved them.
“I felt like we were stuck in mud again for three quarters,” he said. “A 16-point fourth quarter from them was really the key. Don made some great plays, and Evan stepped it up, but our defense saved us.”
Grizzlies
The Grizzlies have promoted Jahmai Mashack to a two-way contract and waived second-year big man PJ Hall, the team announced.
Mashack, the 59th pick in June’s draft, opened the season with the Memphis Hustle. He was effectively a domestic draft-and-stash since the Grizzlies already held his NBA rights.
The 23-year-old guard popped in Summer League, averaging 9.0 points, 4.4 assists and 4.0 rebounds with strong defensive numbers.
He’s been working on his offensive game with the Hustle, telling Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal he wants to build scoring gravity while still creating for others.
“Me being able to do that can help the team as a whole,” he said.
Mashack joins a backcourt dealing with a long injury list. Scotty Pippen Jr. is out multiple months after toe surgery, Ty Jerome has yet to debut due to a preseason calf strain, rookie Javon Small is out at least three weeks with turf toe, and Ja Morant exited Saturday’s game with a sore calf.
As for Hall, he played seven games this season and averaged 1.9 points and 1.3 rebounds.
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