Sixers Notes: Carter-Williams sits out with respiratory infection
NEW ORLEANS - The 76ers headed into the Big Easy without the services of their best player. Michael Carter-Williams was sidelined Monday night for the game against the New Orleans Pelicans because of an upper respiratory infection.
NEW ORLEANS - The 76ers headed into the Big Easy without the services of their best player.
Michael Carter-Williams was sidelined in Monday night's 99-74 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans because of an upper respiratory infection.
It was a huge loss for the squad that already lost its leading scorer, Tony Wroten, indefinitely with a partially torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
Larry Drew II started in place of Carter-Williams hours after he signed his second 10-day contract with team.
"He hasn't been feeling well," Brett Brown said of Carter-Williams. "He guts through the Toronto game [on Friday]. He guts through the Memphis game [on Saturday], and he looked like his energy was sapped. . . . It's just been a progressive illness that has finally caught up with him."
Carter-Williams is the team's second-leading scorer at 15.3 points per game and was ninth in the NBA is assists at 7.1 per game heading into Monday's games.
This marked the ninth game of the season he has missed. Carter-Williams was sidelined for the entire preseason and the first seven games of the season while he rehabilitated after right shoulder surgery. Last season's rookie of year also missed a road matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 1 with right shoulder soreness.
Drew fitting in
The son of Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Larry Drew was averaging 4.7 points and 4.3 assists in 18.6 minutes of action heading into Monday's game.
"This is what I was bred for," Drew said of getting his first start. "I'm not going to take this moment, this opportunity, for granted, because at the end of my [second] 10-day [contract], who knows what is going to happen?"
Kilpatrick's chance
Sean Kilpatrick said this summer that he wanted to make the Sixers' regular-season roster. He could still get a chance by way of a call-up.
The shooting guard had 13 points and five steals Sunday in his second game with Delaware 87ers, the Sixers' NBA Development League team. Kilpatrick was acquired Wednesday from the Santa Cruz Warriors in a trade for former Sixers call-up and St. Joseph's standout Ronald Roberts.