Sixers Post-season hopes Rest on Young

As Thaddeus Young gingerly wrapped his arms around a pair of crutches and hobbled out the door, you couldn’t help wonder if the Sixers season was leaving with him.

Sure, he and coach Tony DiLeo all said the right things. They have confidence in the guys taking his place. The team will rally around others.

But realistically, it has to be a staggering blow`to a team that has already suffered too many of them to lose a player of Young’s caliber at such a critical juncture. When the 20-year-old Young landed awkwardly on the foot of Atlanta’s Josh Smith in the first quarter of what would be a 98-85 Sixers win, he went down hard and didn’t get back up.,

Eventually he had to be helped off the court, unable to put any weight on his right ankle. Even though x-rays and a subsequent MRI showed nothing was broken and that Young had suffered a strained ankle and bone bruise, the damage was severe enough that he’s been ruled out the next 2-3 weeks.

That means it’s unlikely he’d return before the end of the regular season, while the start of the playoffs are in jeopardy, too. While hardly ideal, it still beats the prospect of not getting him back at all, which DiLeo feared. ``It’s a big relief,’’ said DiLeo, regarding the prognosis. ``When I saw him go down I expected a lot worse.

``The best scenario would be getting him back in the regular season. But we’ll do whatever it takes to get him back healthy. If the medical staff says he’s okay and Thad says he’s okay then I’d be confident to play him. But not if one of them isn’t comfortable with it.’’

While Young remains hopeful he can make it back sooner rather than later, he expressed confidence in replacements Reggie Evans and rookie Marreese Speights.

``We have guys who can come in and pick up the slack,’’ said Young, matter of factly some 90 minutes before the Sixers took on the Milwaukee Bucks, with Evans getting the starting nod.. ``I’m sure they’ll do a good job.

DiLeo tried to add to the suspense by refusing to divulge his starter until the last minute, as if tipping off Bucks’ coach Scott Skiles beforehand would make a difference. Other than concede going with Evans in Thad’s spot would indicate an inclination towards defense, while rookie Speights was more of an offensive force, DiLeo was mum.

Unless Thaddeus Young gets back in action soon, though, the likelihood of the Sixers post-season lasting any longer than one round seems virtually negligible.