MCWSo, it turns out MCW’s knee issue is actually an infection that has had him in UPenn hospital since Thursday night.

The team issued a release yesterday, which danced around the extended hospital stay:

Philadelphia 76ers guard Michael Carter-Williams right knee soreness was caused by a skin infection on the front of his right knee.

Carter-Williams has been treated at Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania for the infection and is under the care of Head Team Physician Dr. Brian Sennett and Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Neil Fishman. Penn Medicine is the official healthcare provider of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Carter-Williams is officially listed as day-to-day.

But before the game against the Nuggets last night, the team told reporters that MCW has been in the hospital since Thursday night.

Jason Wolf of Delaware Online:

Michael Carter-Williams, a front-runner for NBA rookie of the year, is spending his third consecutive night at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday with a skin infection on the front of his right knee, according to the Philadelphia 76ers.

The infection is bacterial and “under control now,” according to a source close to the situation. Doctors are “narrowing down which one,” the source said. The 6-5 point guard is under the care of Sixers team physician Dr. Brian Sennett and infectious disease specialist Dr. Neil Fishman.

There is no timetable for his return.

“It’s a right knee infection that really is just being monitored closely, but nothing to really get too overly concerned with,” Sixers coach Brett Brown said.

 

Keith Pompey of the Inquirer:

Carter-Williams was injured while bumping knees with a Detroit Piston on Dec. 1 at the Palace of Auburn Hills. He remained in that game and played Tuesday against the Orlando Magic at the Wells Fargo Center.

The 22-year-old finished with 27 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists in the 126-125 double-overtime victory against the Magic.

“When you looked at it during the overtime, you realize that there was something going on a little bit more than a sore knee,” Brown said. “But at this stage, he’s in good hands. In relation to how long that’s going to take place, I don’t know.”

 

Chris Vito of the Delco Times:

Initially, both Carter-Williams and the Sixers had said the rookie had a sore, swollen knee following contact with another player’s knee in a Dec. 1 game in Detroit. He played 47 minutes through the pain and recorded a triple-double Tuesday in a double-overtime win over Orlando, before sitting out practice Thursday and skipping Friday’s game at Charlotte.

Brown had a hunch it was something more than soreness, he said.

“It’s a combination of the bump and the infection and it’s produced this type of timeline,” Brown said. “I’m not sure (about next week’s road trip). I just keep getting day-to-day advice from people who know more than I do.

“There’s no timeline, either length of time or speed coming back. No one really gives information, because we don’t know.”

Two things to take from this: 1) MCW put up a triple-double on Tuesday with a possibly swollen and infected knee. That’s impressive. 2) The Sixers waited nearly 48 hours to tell anyone that their star rookie point guard had spent two nights in the hospital with an infection, and the beat writers seem to be OK with that. But I don’t really, um, trust the Sixers when it comes to knee injuries… soooo, let’s keep an eye on this.