The Philadelphia 76ers learned Wednesday night how difficult it can be to play two games without Joel Embiid.

Not even 24 hours later, the Sixers learned they’ll have to figure out how to play a lot longer without James Harden.

Harden will be on the sidelines Friday night, when the 76ers are scheduled to host the New York Knicks in the first game of the season between the longtime rivals.

Both teams were off Thursday after falling at home Wednesday. The 76ers trailed for the final 42 minutes of a 121-111 loss to the Washington Wizards. The Knicks blew a 23-point first-half lead in a 112-99 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

Harden appeared to be his usual self while helping to shoulder the load without Embiid on Wednesday night. He finished with 24 points and a team-high 10 assists while playing just over 35 minutes — figures right in line with his seasonal averages of 22.0 points and 10.0 assists in 36.8 minutes per game.

But ESPN reported Thursday afternoon that Harden suffered a right foot tendon strain against the Wizards and is expected to miss a month.

The injury comes as the 76ers begin to embark upon a challenging November schedule. After facing the Knicks, Philadelphia is slated to play nine straight games against teams that either reached the playoffs or fell in the play-in tournament last season.

The 76ers struggled Wednesday in their second straight game without defending NBA scoring champion Embiid, who has not been with the team as he battles a non-COVID illness.

Philadelphia shot 46.4 percent and got outrebounded 43-32 Wednesday without Embiid, who ranked fifth in the NBA in rebounding last season.

“I think it’s the right thing that we’re doing now,” 76ers head coach Doc Rivers said Wednesday night. “Ultimately, I think that started before COVID had actually started and I think it’s the right thing because teams used to go on road trips and one guy would get sick and the next thing you know, the whole team eventually got sick. And so I think we’re doing the right thing, except for your key guys aren’t around sometimes and that hurts you.”

The Knicks had an unexpected opportunity to take on an undermanned opponent Wednesday night, when All-Star guard Trae Young suffered a left eye contusion while contesting a drive to the basket by Julius Randle early in the third quarter.

Young was sidelined for just under 13 minutes. But the Hawks, who completed their comeback by taking a 66-65 lead on a layup by Young moments before he got hurt, outscored the Knicks 31-22 with Young on the bench. They extended their lead to as many as 19 points following his return with 7:04 left in the game.

The loss was the third straight for the Knicks and continued a discouraging trend of frittering away big leads. New York has lost a game in which it led by at least 23 points five times in the last 30 seasons — but three times this calendar year.

“We were up 23 or whatever it was and they obviously cut that down,” Knicks guard Jalen Brunson said. “We were easing our way into the second half and they were putting their foot to the pedal. They were going 100 miles an hour and we were going 50. We’ve got to do better at that point.”

–Field Level Media

Watch out for Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton.

That sentence is certainly top of mind for the Miami Heat, who visit the Indiana Pacers on Friday night.

Haliburton, Indiana’s 6-foot-5 point guard, leads the Pacers in scoring (21.9), assists (9.4) and steals (1.6).

A third-year pro, Haliburton averaged 13.0 points as a rookie and 15.3 last season. He has also improved each year with his assist totals, going from 5.3 as a rookie to 8.2 last season to his current and impressive pace.

Haliburton is also shooting 94.6 percent on free throws and 44.9 percent on 3-pointers.

“He’s got an amazing skill set,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said.

Carlisle said other players around the NBA have remarked how quickly Haliburton plays.

“Wow, this guy plays fast,” Carlisle said. “He moves it quickly.”

Haliburton, 22, has formed a terrific backcourt with 20-year-old rookie Bennedict Mathurin, the eighth overall pick in this year’s draft.

Mathurin, who was born in Montreal and played his college ball at Arizona, is second on the Pacers in scoring (20.4). He is shooting 42.9 percent on 3-pointers and 86.4 percent on free throws.

The Pacers are also getting good production from veteran Buddy Hield, who is third on the team in scoring (17.8) and second in assists (4.1).

Even so, the Pacers are off to a slow start overall, losing five of their eight games. They have not escaped controversy, either, as power forward Myles Turner went on a podcast and said the Lakers should “take a hard look” at making a trade with the Pacers.

“I know what I can provide for a team,” said Turner, who is averaging 13.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in three games since recovering from an ankle injury.

The Heat, meanwhile, have no such internal controversy. The closest thing to controversy was Tyler Herro’s tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left, which led Miami to a 110-107 win over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday.

Sacramento coach Mike Brown said he believes Herro traveled on the play.

Brown did say, however, that Herro is a “great player,” and Heat coach Erik Spoelstra would not disagree with that point.

“That was a big-time shot,” Spoelstra said of Herro’s step-back, pump-fake 3-pointer. “My only criticism was that he left a couple of seconds on the clock.”

That didn’t matter, though, as the Kings failed to score on their final possession, giving the Heat consecutive wins for the first time this season.

The Heat won on Wednesday without their leading scorer, Jimmy Butler (21.5), who sat out due to a sore left hip. He is not traveling with the team to Indianapolis and will miss his second straight game.

Herro, who was poked in his left eye in a win over Golden State on Tuesday, is obviously seeing just fine. Against the Kings, he made 12 of 21 shots from the floor and added 12 rebounds for just his second career double-double.

For the season, Herro is averaging 18.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists. His rebounds are on pace to be a career high, and the same can be said for his 47.8 percent shooting percentage.

A fourth-year pro, Herro is still just 22 years old, which means Heat coaches believe there is significant upside left in his game.

–Field Level Media

Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden is expected to be sidelined for one month after sustaining a right foot tendon strain, ESPN reported Thursday.

Per the report, the severity of the injury was learned after additional tests were conducted on Thursday.

Harden, 33, was injured during Philadelphia’s 121-111 loss to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.

The 10-time All-Star guard is averaging 22.0 points, 10.0 assists and 7.0 rebounds in nine games this season.

A three-time NBA scoring champion and the 2017-18 league MVP, Harden owns career averages of 24.9 points, 6.8 assists and 5.6 rebounds in 951 games (739 starts) with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Brooklyn Nets and 76ers.

–Field Level Media

The NBA fined the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers $25,000 each for violating league rules regarding reporting injuries.

The league said the Thunder failed to disclose the status of guard Josh Giddey “in an accurate and timely manner” before the team’s game against the Orlando Magic on Tuesday.

Giddey played 25 minutes and scored seven points.

The Clippers, per the NBA, also didn’t announce the proper game availability status for guard Brandon Boston Jr. and forward Moussa Diabate ahead of their home game last Sunday against the New Orleans Pelicans. In this case, the league said the team listed both players as unavailable because of an assignment in the NBA G League, but they appeared in the game against the Pelicans.

Each played four minutes, 31 seconds. Boston hit both of his 3-point attempts for six points, and Diabate didn’t score.

–Field Level Media

A former clinical psychologist who worked for the San Antonio Spurs said the team failed to act when she reported multiple instances of indecent exposure by Joshua Primo, a 2021 first-round draft pick released by the team last week, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday.

The lawsuit, filed in Bexar County, Texas, contends Primo exposed himself to Dr. Hillary Cauthen on nine occasions. Cauthen’s suit said she informed the team in January about the first incident, which she said occurred in December 2021.

“Rather than act on Dr. Cauthen’s reports, the Spurs ignored her complaints, hoping the organization could ignore and then cover up Primo’s actions,” per the lawsuit. “The Spurs organization was willing to sacrifice Dr. Cauthen to keep what they hoped would one day be a star player.”

The suit continued: “The Spurs’ conduct sends a strong message that they, like other major sports organizations, are willing to tolerate abhorrent conduct on the part of athletes and sacrifice loyal employees, so long as the athlete is successful on the court.”

Cauthen’s attorney is Tony Buzbee, who represented the approximately two dozen women who filed civil suits against Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, accusing him of civil misconduct in message sessions. Watson settled the cases out of court with most of the women.

Buzbee said the team released Primo, 19, after he allegedly exposed himself to a woman in Minnesota last week. Buzbee said Primo also was accused of indecent exposure in July when he visited Las Vegas for the NBA Summer League.

The Spurs selected Primo with the No. 12 pick in last year’s draft and released him Friday. They previously picked up his option for a third year with a guaranteed $4.3 million salary in 2023-24.

“It is our hope that, in the long run, this decision will serve the best interest of both the organization and Joshua,” Spurs chief executive officer RC Buford said after releasing Primo.

William J. Briggs II, Primo’s attorney, issued a statement Thursday denying the allegations.

“Josh Primo is a 19-year-old NBA player who has suffered a lifetime of trauma and challenges,” Briggs said. “He is now being victimized by his former team-appointed sports psychologist, who is playing to ugly stereotypes and racially charged fears for her own financial benefit.”

Briggs called Cauthen’s allegations “an act of betrayal against her young client.”

“Dr. Cauthen’s allegations are either a complete fabrication, a gross embellishment or utter fantasy,” Briggs said. “Josh Primo never intentionally exposed himself to her or anyone else and was not even aware that his private parts were visible outside of his workout shorts.”

The Spurs also released a statement from Buford on Thursday in defense of the team.

“We disagree with the accuracy of facts, details and timeline presented today,” Buford said. “While we would like to share more information, we will allow the legal process to play out. Our organization remains committed to upholding the highest standards and will continue to live by our values and culture.”

Primo issued a statement to ESPN on Friday, expressing that he was struggling with his mental health.

“I’ve been seeking help to deal with previous trauma I suffered and will now take this time to focus on my mental health treatment more fully,” Primo said. “I hope to be able to discuss these issues in the future so I can help others who have suffered in a similar way. I appreciate privacy at this time.”

Primo cleared waivers earlier this week and is a free agent.

Primo played in four games this season and averaged 7.0 points, 4.5 assists and 3.3 rebounds. Before being waived, he was on the team’s injury report, listed as having left glute soreness.

As a rookie in 2021-22, Primo played 50 games, including 16 starts. He averaged 5.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

–Field Level Media