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Joel Embiid’s Former Backup Gets Positive Injury Update with Clippers

Will Mo Bamba make his Clippers debut after spending the past season with the Philadelphia 76ers?

Justin Grasso

Oct 2, 2023; Camden, NJ, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) and center Mo Bamba (7) pose for a photo during media day at Philadelphia 76ers Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Oct 2, 2023; Camden, NJ, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) and center Mo Bamba (7) pose for a photo during media day at Philadelphia 76ers Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
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A former Philadelphia 76ers player received positive news this weekend. Los Angeles Clippers big man Mo Bamba is on pace to potentially make his 2024-2025 NBA season debut with his newest team.

According to the Clippers’ injury report, Bamba is not present, signaling that he’s available for LA’s Sunday night matchup against the Utah Jazz at home. Lately, Bamba’s been dealing with a knee injury.

The 26-year-old former first-round pick has been bouncing around the NBA in recent seasons. Last year, Bamba signed with the Sixers, hoping to pick up a key role as Joel Embiid’s primary backup.

Unfortunately, the situation wasn’t favorable for Bamba. The Sixers re-signed their former second-round pick, Paul Reed, ahead of the season. Considering they invested over $20 million in him, Philadelphia had plans to utilize the former NBA G League MVP, making it tough for Bamba to get a true look.

The former Texas star wasn’t totally overlooked, though. Bamba appeared in 57 games, even taking up 17 starts. He ended up starting the most games in a single season since his 2021–2022 campaign with the Magic.

Overall, Bamba averaged roughly ten minutes of playing time with the Sixers. He put up four points per game while coming down with four rebounds per outing. From the field, Bamba averaged 49 percent.

Considering he was on a one-year deal with the Sixers, Bamba hit the free agency market again this past summer. Since he couldn’t earn a consistent role within Nick Nurse’s system, Bamba took his talents out West. He’ll attempt to carve out a role for himself on the Clippers.

The Clippers and the Jazz are set to battle it out at 9 PM ET. on Sunday.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA

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