(AP)

The 76ers’ Arnett Moultrie was suspended five games without pay by the NBA for violating terms of the league’s and the players association’s anti-drug program.

The league announced Moultrie’s ban Monday, when the second-year forward was said to have begun serving his salary-free suspension with the Sixers’ game at Atlanta. In addition, Moultrie is also ineligible for the Delaware 87ers’ games during his suspension. He was assigned to the Sixers’ D-League affiliate March 15.

The 6-10, 245-pound Moultrie would not be eligible to return for the Sixers until April 11, for the final four games of the regular season.

The suspension of Moultrie, a 2012 first-round draft pick, should be a cause of concern for the Sixers. They are on the hook for the 23-year-old’s $1.14 million contract for the 2014-15 season, picking up his team option during training camp. 

Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie has shown no reluctance in his willingness to eat salaries, however. He waived center Kwame Brown, owed $3 million, in November. And he did the same in March with guard Eric Maynor, who is set to make $2.1 million next season.

Moultrie has appeared in only 12 games this season for the Sixers, for whom he’s averaging three points and nearly three rebounds. Between two tours in the D-League, he’s averaged 10.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 28.3 minutes in eight appearances with the Sevens. 

Moultrie was withheld from practice until Dec. 31, while recovering from preseason left ankle surgery.

(AP)

At the start of the week, the 76ers bench featured never-healthy veteran Kwame Brown and one of the league’s worst returns from its collective of reserves.

Friday night, a funny thing happened: The Sixers actually got something from its second-stringers.

The Sixers’ bench pulled its weight in a 115-107 overtime victory over Milwaukee. The reserves accounted for 35 points on 14-for-25 shooting, to go with 18 rebounds and 12 assists. The group was led by undrafted wing Hollis Thompson, who shot 7-for-9 from the floor for 16 points in 21 minutes.

Thompson turned in two of the game’s finer plays: a second-quarter alley-oop dunk, off a pass from Tony Wroten, on which Thompson’s chin was at rim-level, and a 3-pointer in overtime that pushed the game out of the Bucks’ reach.

The contributions of the Sixers’ bench players were a far cry from what they’ve averaged coming into their game against Milwaukee. The Sixers’ second unit had been posting fewer than 16 points per game, the fifth-worst average in the league.

“Hollis had a big night,” said Evan Turner, who scored eight of the Sixers’ 13 points in overtime.

Other players chipping in off the bench were: Lavoy Allen (nine points, eight rebounds, 34 minutes), Elliot Williams (six points, 14 minutes) and Tony Wroten (six assists, 11 minutes).

Williams and Lorenzo Brown were signed Wednesday to replace Darius Morris and Kwame Brown, who were waived. Those two guards already appear to be upgrades, as Williams was a player without a contract anywhere and Brown was playing for Springfield (Mass.) in the D-League.

(AP)

The 76ers waived center Kwame Brown and guard Darius Morris Wednesday, making room for guards Elliot Williams and Lorenzo Brown, for whom the terms of the contracts are unknown.

Kwame Brown, pictured, who had yet to play this season while battling a right hamstring strain, is due $3 million. Morris, who averaged 6.9 points in 16.8 minutes in 12 appearances, will make $1.06 million.

“Never a fun day to have to do that, but this is the stage we’re in,” Sixers GM Sam Hinkie said on the roster moves. “We’ll continue to evaluate players and find ones that can help us move forward and find others on our radar that we can add to our group.”

Williams (6-5, 190), taken 22^nd overall by Portland in the 2010 NBA draft, wasn’t affiliated with any team when he got the call to join the Sixers. He had been working out in his hometown of Memphis, after playing with the Cleveland Cavaliers in training camp. He said he knows Memphis guys and new Sixers teammates Thad Young and Arnett Moultrie. Williams played in 24 games with the Trail Blazers in the 2011-12 seaon.

Lorenzo Brown (6-5, 186), selected 52^nd overall by Minnesota in the 2013 draft, was with the D-League’s Springfield Armor when contacted by the Sixers. He said he spent his Tuesday afternoon driving to Philadelphia, and took a physical Wednesday morning. Brown played his college ball at N.C. State.

(AP)

With time winding down before the 76ers have to get their roster in compliance with NBA mandates, coach Brett Brown offered a glimpse into what he’s looking for from the group of players vying to avoid being the last man cut.

“An NBA skill,” Brown said after Friday’s practice. “Is he an NBA shooter? Is he an NBA athlete? Can he become an NBA shooter? Can he became an NBA athlete?”

Brown said “a few of the young guys” are in the mix to make the team before the Sixers, who are carrying 16 players, have to trim their roster by one to get down to a league-maximum 15. Among the players who face being waived by the Sixers are: Rodney Williams, Hollis Thompson, Gani Lawal and Kwame Brown.

A 13^th-year center, Kwame Brown (pictured) remains a possibility to be waived or moved by the Sixers, as they cannot afford to have such little roster flexibility at the beginning of the season. Brown has yet to play in the preseason and has seen little to no court time along the way while battling with a hamstring strain. Carrying Brown would mean the Sixers, who already have three players (Nerlens Noel, Jason Richardson and Arnett Moultrie) dealing with long-term injuries, will be limited to 11 healthy players for Wednesday’s opener against visiting Miami.

“I’m terrified by the reality of our injured list,” Brett Brown said. “How many NBA teams start the year with four guys on the injured list? We have no relief. To carry 11 people and try to play hard games and try to practice hard and reduce injury, that is a funny mix. At the minute, I’d like to say, ‘Heck yeah, that’s what I’d like to do,’ but I want to be smart with the realities of our roster.”

The other possibility is that the Sixers cut no one.

Brett Brown could petition the league to get a fourth player on the injury list and a 16^th roster spot, though that usually requires having a player who will miss the full season. And since neither the Sixers nor Richardson or Noel have declared either of those two out for good, that might be a stretch.

The 76ers will conduct media day proceedings Friday, followed by the opening of training camp Saturday. And already, the team has reported a pair of injuries -- one more substantial than the other.

Forward Arnett Moultrie suffered a medial malleolus injury in his left ankle last week during workouts with the team and he underwent surgery Thursday. The team said Moultrie, the second-year big, isn't expected to return until January 2014 at the earliest.

Center Kwame Brown sustained a right hamstring strain during offseason workouts and will receive a second opinion on how to proceed.

This was to be viewed as a potential breakout year for Moultrie, whose numbers jumped up tremendously with an increase in playing time with a jolt in minutes in the latter part of his rookie season. Moultrie, who averaged 13.5 minutes while playing in 28 of the team's 31 games after the All-Star break, averaged 3.7 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.

Brown played in 22 games last season, none after Feb. 20, averaging 1.9 points and 3.4 rebounds.

(Associated Press)

76ers coach Brett Brown spoke to reporters Wednesday, two days in advance of the team’s opening of training camp. Here are a few key items to take away from the first-year coach’s 35-minute presser:

• Keeping Noel involved. By most estimates, rookie center Nerlens Noel won’t be available to play until December at the earliest, while continuing rehab on the left knee in which Noel incurred an ACL tear back in February. So Brown said it’s his mission to keep Noel involved by inviting him on roadtrips, ensuring the Kentucky standout attends film sessions and practices and the like.
• Three are injured – already. Forwards Lavoy Allen and Arnett Moultrie and center Kwame Brown are hurt. Brown did not offer specificity of the injuries; neither did a team spokesman. The team’s training staff or Brown, after consultation with those trainers, are expected to offer more detail Friday at the team’s media day.
• Brown is kind of a gym rat. Most coaches like their players to be the first ones into the gym and the last ones to leave. The Sixers coach wants his guys to stay in the other kind of gym. Wednesday, Brown made it abundantly clear how much he values proper fitness and diet, and how those relate to staving off injury while extending the duration of careers. Read more here.
• Royce White is with the team. The second-year forward acquired from Houston is with the team and figures to be a part of the team’s training camp. “It’s exciting to see what could happen if the physical side of getting him in great shape can collide with his talents and all the other things that have gone on with Royce,” Brown said. “I really want to pay attention to Royce and give him a best shot to find a role on the team.” White missed all of his rookie season while battling anxiety issues and a fear of flying.

More to come from the Sixers in the coming days, as training camp opens Friday. Stay tuned.

Also, check out Jack McCaffery's column on Brown's challenges up ahead and his expectations for how quickly he can turn the Sixers, who are entering a low-pressure training camp, into a contender.