76ers Starting Lineup Without Joel Embiid, Paul George vs Raptors

Who is starting for the 76ers on Friday night?

Mar 31, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) drives for a shot against Toronto Raptors forward O.G. Anunoby (3) during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

On Friday night, the Philadelphia 76ers will go in another game without the presence of the All-Stars, Joel Embiid and Paul George. Paying a visit to the Toronto Raptors, the Sixers will have to get creative, working around the one-time All-Star Tyrese Maxey.

Throughout the offseason, the Sixers were expected to slowly ease Joel Embiid into the lineup. The veteran center isn’t dealing with any further setbacks from last year’s knee injury, according to the team, but they are making sure he’s ramped up and ready before his debut this year.

As for the nine-time All-Star Paul George, the Sixers added the forward with hopes that he can help Maxey on nights like this when Embiid is out. Unfortunately, George did suffer a setback recently.

In a Monday night matchup against the Atlanta Hawks, George was seen limping after dealing with a knee hyperextension. He was ruled out for the remainder of the game and underwent an MRI the following day.

The diagnosis was probably the best-case scenario for the Sixers. George avoided a major setback. Still, he’s been missing quality time with the team as the regular season begins.

George was ruled out of Wednesday’s opener against the Bucks. While the team refrained from ruling George out of Friday’s game against the Raptors before, they noted that the All-Star forward would miss the next two games, which include matchups against the Raptors and the Indiana Pacers.

The Sixers also added Caleb Martin to the injury report ahead of the Friday night game. As Martin deals with a calf contusion, the Sixers considered a potential night off for their free-agent acquisition from the Miami Heat.

Oct 28, 2023; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey (0) passes the ball against the Toronto Raptors in the first half at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images / Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

76ers Starting Lineup vs Toronto Raptors

• Tyrese Maxey

• Kyle Lowry

• Kelly Oubre

• Caleb Martin

• Andre Drummond

On Wednesday, Nick Nurse trotted out KJ Martin in the starting lineup, noting that he liked what he saw out of the young veteran throughout training camp and the preseason. He mentioned that he wanted Caleb Martin to bring the energy off the bench but play starter minutes.

KJ Martin posted three points and five rebounds. He was a minus-12 in 15 minutes of action. Caleb Martin indeed played starter minutes, checking in for 38 minutes. During that time, he nearly notched a double-double, making 50 percent of his shots to score 12 points and coming down with nine rebounds.

Caleb Martin will collect his first start with the Sixers on Friday, as will Kyle Lowry.

The Sixers and the Raptors will tip off at 7:00 PM ET.