March 9, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Dalen Terry (14) knocks down the ball from Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dennis Schroder (8) in the second half at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images The athletically lacking Philadelphia 76ers are struggling, but they won’t get any sympathy from the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Sixers will be hoping to avoid their fifth loss in six games on Tuesday night against the Grizzlies, who have lost four in a row.
Of course, wins and losses are only part of the story for Philadelphia and Memphis, both of which are navigating lengthy lists of injuries.
The Sixers will be without Joel Embiid (oblique), Tyrese Maxey (finger), rookie VJ Edgecombe (back) and Paul George, who is suspended for violating the NBA’s drug policy.
Without its four best players, the team had trouble holding on in Monday’s 115-101 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“We’ve got to make better shots for each other with people down,” said Cameron Payne, who had 12 points in place of Maxey. “You just have to find a way to get something easy.”
Quentin Grimes led the 76ers with 17 points and Justin Edwards added 14 off the bench. Edwards finished 5 of 6 from the field in his highest-scoring game since Nov. 11.
“I thought we had some guys playing pretty well,” Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse said.
The Sixers will face the Grizzlies without Maxey, who could return later this week, and Embiid, who hopes to return in late March. Edgecombe could return to the lineup on Tuesday.
“(There’s) a chance,” Nurse said of Edgecombe. “He’s in court again today, so he’s literally taking it day by day and we’re hopeful he’ll be ready to go soon.”
While the Sixers have plenty of injury concerns, the Grizzlies’ problems are daunting. The team had just eight players in uniform (three of them were two-way players) in Monday’s 126-115 loss to the Brooklyn Nets.
Not only did they lack healthy bodies, the Grizzlies had very little size to use against the Nets. GG Jackson, a 6-foot-9 forward, was the only player on the team who could stand taller than 6-foot-7.
“Our guys did a tremendous job applying ball pressure and forcing (19) turnovers,” Memphis coach Tuomas Isalo said. “In some situations, they were two sizes too small under the rim.”
The Grizzlies were outrebounded 43-36 by the Nets, but made up for it to some extent by shooting 40 percent on 3-pointers and 21 of 25 from the foul line. Despite this, Memphis has lost 11 of its last 14 outings.
“We couldn’t break down their defense,” said Iisalo, whose team was led by Rayan Rupert (20 points), Javon Small (19 points) and Jackson (18 points).
Tuesday’s matchup with Philadelphia will conclude a short two-game road trip for Memphis, which will have Wednesday off before another back-to-back set against the Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons on Thursday and Friday.
“With a very busy schedule of four games in five days, unfortunately we cannot think much about this,” Iisalo said. “I have to go to Philadelphia tomorrow.”
This is the second and last meeting between the two teams this season. The Sixers edged the Grizzlies 139-136 in Memphis on Dec. 30 as Edgecombe drained the decisive 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds left in overtime.
–Field level media
