Short-handed Sixers visit Jokic, Nuggets

The Philadelphia 76ers will be without two of their top players on Saturday while the Denver Nuggets will get their best player back.

Philadelphia center Joel Embiid will be held out for rest, while shooting guard Jimmy Butler will miss his third straight game due to a right wrist injury as the 76ers open a four-game road trip with a visit against the Nuggets on Saturday night.

Butler was ruled out on Saturday. He traveled to Los Angeles to visit a specialist on Friday.

"It's a confirmation that things are OK," 76ers coach Brett Brown told reporters of Butler's trip. "It's far more precautionary than stuff that people are, sort of, overly worried about."

Embiid has been experiencing back soreness, and Brown said there was already a plan in place to give the All-Star a break. Still, the move raised eyebrows as the 76ers last played Wednesday, and their following game isn't until Tuesday at the Los Angeles Lakers.

"It's been a little bit of the fact that he has had some back tightness," Brown told reporters. "It really has been a planned rest. It's not entirely a reaction to some of the things he's gone through. It's a collaborative thing."

Meanwhile, Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic will be back in action after being suspended for one game without pay after leaving the bench area on Wednesday while teammate Mason Plumlee and Utah's Derrick Favors engaged in a shoving match.

Denver didn't miss its double-double machine -- Jokic has posted 19 in the past 24 games -- as it steamrolled the visiting Phoenix Suns 132-95 on Friday.

Regardless, the Nuggets didn't agree with the discipline of Jokic, but NBA officials ruled he acted in an aggressive manner.

"The rules are the rules," Denver coach Michael Malone told reporters. "Obviously you want them to be delivered consistently, but they just felt Nikola was a little bit aggressive in his movement along the baseline, which they feel could've maybe escalated the situation."

With Jokic sidelined, there were opportunities for other players to play a role. In fact, eight players scored in double digits for the Nuggets (32-15), who are 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference race.

"That's what good teams do," Malone said. "When somebody's not here, somebody else steps up. And tonight was another example of the quality depth we have."

Denver point guard Jamal Murray was limited to 23 minutes due to ankle soreness -- he scored 13 points -- but Malone said afterward that Murray will play against the 76ers.

Philadelphia (32-17) resides in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, four games behind the first-place Milwaukee Bucks.

The 76ers registered a 122-120 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday as point guard Ben Simmons recorded 21 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds for his eighth triple-double of the season and 20th of his career.

Embiid added 33 points and 19 rebounds in the victory.

Forward Wilson Chandler played 36 minutes against the Spurs and reported feeling hamstring tightness. He will miss the game against Denver, the franchise he spent six-plus seasons with before being traded to the 76ers in the offseason.

--Field Level Media