The 2021 NBA All Star Game, which was pointless to begin with, is now even more pointless for Sixers fans.

Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons won’t be playing, according to the league:

NEW YORK, March 7, 2021 – Prior to traveling to Atlanta, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons had contact with an individual who is confirmed today to have tested positive for the coronavirus.  As a result, Embiid (Team Durant) and Simmons (Team LeBron) will not play in tonight’s NBA All-Star Game.

Participation for other All-Stars and members of the 76ers coaching staff in Atlanta is not affected because they were not exposed to the individual in Philadelphia.

It was a dumb idea to begin with, flying a bunch of players and coaches to Atlanta for a meaningless game in the middle of a pandemic.

The positive here is that it’s only contact tracing for Ben and Joel, no positive test. They avoid possible injury in the ASG and should be fine to return when the regular season resumes on Thursday in Chicago.