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The Pacers moved their practice on Thursday to Hinkle Fieldhouse while their normal Fieldhouse was hosting the Big Ten Tournament. The Pacers will make their way to Philadelphia later in the day where they will play the 76ers on Friday night in the first of back-to-back road games.
Andrew Bynum didn't take part in the practice session on Thursday and will not play in his return to Philly on Friday according to post-practice comments from Frank Vogel.
At today's practice, Coach Vogel said Andrew Bynum will sit tomorrow against the Sixers and is expected to play Saturday in Detroit.
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) March 13, 2014
The status and impact of Andrew Bynum remains day-to-day but this situation is no cause for concern. I wouldn't expect the Pacers to play Bynum in back-to-back games, so in this instance they are choosing to play Bynum in Detroit, as opposed to Philly. The real good news regarding Bynum was the fact he was able to participate in practice on Wednesday without incident after his debut for the Pacers on Tuesday night.
Speaking of day-to-day, that's how Vogel describe the status of C.J. Watson and Ian Mahinmi. We'll see just how serious Mahinmi's rib injury is if he is unavailable to play in Philly. The absence of both Mahinmi and Bynum could open up the first real minutes for Lavoy Allen as the recently acquired Pacers plays his former team for the first time.
Check out this report from Scott Agness following the Pacers' practice on Wednesday with a good update on the issues facing Watson and Mahinmi. It doesn't sound like Watson will need more time before he returns as the team monitors the swelling in his elbow.