Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, both ruled out Thursday due to COVID-19 contact detection

The Philadelphia 76ers said Tuesday that All-Stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons will both miss Thursday’s game against the Chicago Bulls and that Simmons will miss Friday’s game against the Washington Wizards due to the same contact trace that both withheld. takes part in Sunday’s All-Star Game in Atlanta.

Assuming both are still going to test negative for COVID-19 – as they have done so far – Embiid will be eligible to return Friday night’s game against Washington, while Simmons will be able to return home on Sunday against the San Antonio Spurs.

Both players were taken out of Sunday’s All-Star Game after coming into contact with a barber in Philadelphia who later tested positive for COVID-19. However, the NBA had strict quarantines for everyone who performed at the league’s mid-season, and the two players were able to leave Atlanta later that day and return to Philadelphia. They were the only two people involved in the game who had problems with a positive test or contact detection over the weekend.

The Sixers finished the first half of the season with the best record in the Eastern Conference, a half-game ahead of the Brooklyn Nets. They will practice Wednesday night before returning to court in Chicago on Thursday.

Embiid is in the middle of the best season of his career, with more than 30 points and 11 rebounds per game, and is consequently a leading candidate for the NBA’s MVP award.

Simmons averaged 16.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 7.6 assists per game, and has linked his impressive defensive ability to a recent outburst of aggression – including a 42-point career high in Utah last month in a game that Embiid put out to injury.