Sixers center Adem Bona has been diagnosed with a left foot sprain following an MRI and is expected to be reevaluated at the start of training camp in a couple weeks, the team announced in a press release (Twitter link via Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports).
According to Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link), Bona suffered the injury in a World Cup qualifying game while playing for the Turkish national team. The 6’10” big man is expected to be back on the court within the first two weeks of training camp, sources tell Jones.
Bona, 23, averaged 4.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 17.4 minutes per game across 71 regular season outings in 2025/26. The former second-round pick will be competing with Ariel Hukporti to be Philadelphia’s primary backup center behind Joel Embiid.
Here’s more from around the Atlantic Division:
- With Jaylen Brown and LeBron James now members of the Sixersguard VJ Edgecombe will likely be asked to play more of a complementary offensive role in 2026/27, Adam Aaronson of PhillyVoice writes. Continuing to improve as a defender and three-point shooter will be key for the 21-year-old in year two, according to Aaronson.
- In a subscriber-only story for the New York Post Jared Schwartz compares and contrasts recent Knicks additions John Konchar, Drew Eubanks, Bruce Brown, James Wiseman and Broken Blackall of whom signed non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 deals for training camp and could be competing for one roster spot, barring other roster moves. Schwartz believes adding a third center is the “most pressing need” for the Knicks at the moment, but notes that the team could choose to retain one of the wings (Konchar, Brown, Agbaji) and address the third center spot later in the season.
- Veteran forward Michael Porter Jr. is very bullish on the Nets’ outlook for this season (Twitter video link). Appearing on a recent live stream (Kick link), Porter said trade addition Julius Randle should help take some offensive pressure off him, adding that all of the team’s 2025 first-round picks “got so much better” this offseason. “I don’t know what the expectations are for our team, but we’re definitely gonna surpass them,” he said. When asked if he thought the Nets would win 50-plus games this season, Porter replied, “Yeah, I do.”