Turns out the Sixers are learning this lesson the hard way.
A big reason the team thought they could manage an 82-game season without Joel Embiid always being available was the reacquisition of Andre Drummond. They thought they’d be getting a starter-level player for that backup role, under the impression that plenty of starts comes with the job too.
Drummond has been just as banged up as anybody else on the team. He’s only appeared in 36 of 60 possible games so far, the main culprit being an injury to his left big toe he suffered back on Dec.