USA TODAY International Edition
Sixers’ Embiid limited, still valued
USA TODAY Sports’ top three candidates for the NBA Rookie of the Year award ( through Week 14, Jan. 29- Sunday; statistics reflected are through Sunday’s games).
Also receiving votes: Brooklyn Nets’ Caris LeVert, Los Angeles Lakers’ Brandon Ingram, New York Knicks’ Willy Hernangomez, Phoenix Suns’ Marquese Chriss.
3. DARIO SARIC, PHILADELPHIA 76ERS Saric has seen an uptick in minutes because of injuries to Joel Embiid and Robert Covington. The 22- year- old forward scored in double figures in three of the 76ers’ five games in Week 14 — a 17- point, six- assist, five- rebound outing in a win against the Kings, a 10- point, seven- rebound outing in a loss to the Mavericks and a 14- point, nine- rebound outing in a loss to the Spurs.
2. MALCOLM BROGDON, MILWAUKEE BUCKS Brogdon’s best game of the week came Saturday, when he tallied 13 points ( on 5- for- 8 shooting), eight assists, five rebounds and three steals in a 137- 112 rout of the Suns. On the season, the 24year- old rookie is averaging 9.2 points, 4.2 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals. “He’s a very talented man on and off the floor,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd told reporters recently. “He’s playing at a very high level, and it’s welldeserved.”
1. JOEL EMBIID, PHILADELPHIA 76ERS Embiid has played in only one of the 76ers’ last nine games — a 32point, seven- rebound, four- assist performance against the Rockets on Jan. 27 — because of a knee contusion. The 76ers have gone 3- 6 during that span. Expect Philadelphia to continue to err on the side of caution with its franchise player, although he’s expected back in the near future. “When we hear me and others talk about that extreme caution, I think it shouldn’t surprise anybody,” 76ers coach Brett Brown said, per The Philadelphia Inquirer. “In fact, I think people should get upset if they hear anything else ... given where we are at right now. So we take it to the extreme on managing Joel Embiid’s health.”