Anfernee Simons Questionable for Sixers Opener: The Hamstring Waiting Game Begins
Anfernee Simons (hamstring) listed questionable for Tuesday.
The NBA season hasn't even officially tipped off yet, and we are already doing the questionable tag dance. According to Underdog NBA, 76ers guard is officially listed as questionable for Tuesday's opener thanks to a lingering hamstring issue.
If you feel like you haven't seen Simons on a basketball court in a minute, your memory is working perfectly. He sat out the entire preseason nursing this exact same injury, turning his highly anticipated Sixers debut into a frustrating waiting game.
The stakes here are pretty straightforward for . Last season, Simons was a walking bucket, putting up 22.6 points, 5.5 assists, and draining 3.4 threes per game. You do not just replace that kind of perimeter firepower with a polite round of applause and a backup shooting guard.
Hamstring injuries in the NBA are basically the check-engine light of sports medicine. You can ignore it and hope for the best, but there is a very high chance you end up stranded on the side of the road in the second quarter.
For the fantasy managers who drafted him and the bettors staring at Tuesday's prop lines, this is pure agony. A questionable tag on opening night means you are either getting a rusty shooter on a minutes restriction or a guy in street clothes eating sunflower seeds on the bench.
There is a sliver of good news, though. Simons was a partial participant in practice on Sunday alongside Adem Bona, which means he is at least moving in the right direction. We will find out Tuesday night if the Sixers decide to unleash him or play it safe for the long haul.