PHILADELPHIA — In the 76ers’ annus horribilis, Tyrese Maxey is on the formal list of casualties. Or is he? A report by ESPN’s Shams Charania Thursday indicated that the Sixers would shut down the All-Star guard for the season, though coach Nick Nurse only went as far as saying Maxey was out fo r Thursday night’s visit from Milwaukee. Nurse earlier in the week said they were taking it game-by-game with the right finger sprain for Maxey, who has been out since March 3. That is notably different than day-to-day, which Maxey has not yet been listed as in any injury reports, remaining strictly “out.” But out for the season? Not yet, anyway, per Nurse. “He’s just out for this evening,” Nurse said. “I think we talked about that he had to work out. He did. He did have another workout again, I think I mentioned before that the first one didn’t go that great. He had another one. He did receive more imaging as well, but our medical (team) just told me he’s out for tonight.” Maxey last played against Portland in early March, when he scored five points on 2-for-13 shooting in a loss to Portland. The Sixers, losers of nine straight, are 2-14 since then as they race to the top of the lottery in an effort to retain their top-6 protected pick in this year’s draft. Maxey has made 52 starts this season, averaging 26.3 points per game, up from his All-Star campaign last year. He’s added 6.1 assists and 3.3 rebounds in 37.7 minutes per contest. That is the highest in the league, though Maxey won’t meet the games-played minimum. Maxey missed six games in November with a hamstring issue. He came back stronger, with a streak from Jan. 6-Feb. 9 where he scored 25 or more points in 18 straight games, averaging 32.4 points per game. That ended with five points in 34 minutes against Toronto on Feb. 11, a game in which he injured his knee. He played just six more times after that one-game absence, averaging 16.7 points, clearly bothered by the finger and perhaps affected by the early-season requirement to carry the load without Embiid and George. The combination of the workload and injuries means his field goal percentage this year dropped to 43.7, from a high of 48.5 in 2021-22, and his 3-point percentage nearly 10 points from a high of 43.4 in 2022-23 to 33.7. His finger has hampered his shooting, and with little left to play for, there seems little reason for the 76ers to bring him back. But the club didn’t take that step yet. Already on the season-ending injury list are Joel Embiid (knee), Paul George (groin), Eric Gordon (wrist) and Jared McCain (knee). • • • Embiid, the club announced Wednesday, will have arthroscopic surgery to clean up the left knee that required a meniscus repair in Feb. 2024. The arthroscopy is a less invasive procedure aimed at getting Embiid back to feeling like himself, something that eluded him in a lost season of 19 games and 23.8 ppg average this season. “I’ve been kind of saying all the way through that there was a lot of paths, and this is the one that they decided to go with,” Nurse said. “… We’re all hoping Joel … first and foremost, is hoping he can get back to himself. That’s what we’re shooting for.” Embiid was in the locker room with teammates Thursday, on 76ers team picture day. • • • The Sixers’ revolving door of personnel swung again Thursday and spit out Colin Castleton on a 10-day contract. Castleton, 24, has played 36 career NBA games with the Lakers in 2023-24 and this year with Memphis and Toronto. He’s averaged 3.0 points and 2.6 rebounds in 10.1 minutes in this contests. That included a career-high 14 rebounds against the 76ers March 12. The 6-11, 250-pound forward played at Michigan, then Florida, and went undrafted in 2023. Should Castleton get in a game, he’d be the 29th player to suit up for the 76ers this year. That’s one more than last year, which was the club record. It’s the most in the NBA, Charlotte having used 26 and six teams with 24. Denver, Houston and Orlando have used the least at 17, or 41 percent fewer. Castleton would also be the 50th different player to play a regular-season game for the 76ers since the start of the 2023-24 season. Castleton boosts a frontcourt that is still without Andre Drummond, due to a toe injury. Guerschon Yabusele started Thursday after being listed as questionable with knee soreness, alongside fellow forward Adem Bona. That meant the Sixers’ chase for a record-breaking 53rd different starting lineup stalled, the team rolling out the two forwards, Justin Edwards, Jared Butler and Quentin Grimes. • • • Doc Rivers brought his Bucks to town tied with Phil Jackson for seventh in NBA history with 1,155 regular-season wins. Of those, 236 came in Philadelphia from 2020-23. “It’s awesome,” he said. “It just says I’ve had a lot of success. I’ve done a lot of good things in this job. I’ve also had a lot of help. I’ve had great coaches with me. I have an amazing staff now. I’ve had some pretty good players throughout my career, but winning is what we’re supposed to do.” Rivers is second among active coaches, behind all-time leader Gregg Popovich with 1,420. Next up on the list of Jackson and Rivers is George Karl’s 1,175. ...read more read less