Ben Simmons’ availability to face his former team in Philadelphia on Saturday night is still up in the air.
After Friday’s practice, head coach Jacque Vaughn announced that Simmons was a partial participant and remains day-to-day.
He was to receive treatment Friday night and Saturday morning, and from there the Nets plan to gauge his availability against the 76ers.
He was listed as probable on Friday’s status report.
“Ben was a partial participant because we tried to go up and down a little bit and so we held him out of that portion of practice,” Vaughn said. “So he was able to go through some sets and walk through some things defensively.
“We’ll see how his response was later [Friday] evening. He’ll get treatment and then treatment also [Saturday] morning so I hope to see him playing. That’s the inclination for this group and the hopeful expectation is he’s playing.”
Simmons made his long-awaited return Monday night against the Jazz after missing nearly three months with a lower-back nerve impingement.
He made a noticeable impact for the Nets in just 18 minutes of the 147-114 win, scoring 10 points to go with 11 assists, eight rebounds, one steal and one block.
Yet, after an awkward fall while attempting to block Talen Horton-Tucker’s layup, Simmons left the game with a knee contusion.
Simmons then sat out Wednesday night, missing Kevin Durant’s return to Brooklyn with the Suns. It was Simmons’ 40th missed game of the season.
Dorian Finney-Smith announced he will be out against Philadelphia while still nursing his left ankle sprain, but said he will be traveling with the Nets for the game.
In Friday’s practice, he started to run but remains day-to-day, hoping to feel better Monday when the Nets host the Warriors.
“It’s rough. I don’t like sitting but you know, I gotta take care of myself,” Finney-Smith said. “Just one of those injuries where you hurt your ankle and it’s weak, so it’s kind of easy for you to turn it again. … It’s gonna be a process, but I don’t want to be out too long.”
Finney-Smith, 30, suffered the injury during the Nets’ tight 106-104 win over the Rockets last Saturday. After blocking Cam Whitmore’s shot, he sprained his ankle, leaving with 3:45 left in the third quarter and never returning.
He arrived in Brooklyn almost a year ago and has averaged 9.1 points on 41.2 percent shooting this season to go along with 4.8 rebounds per game.
The forward remains under contract through next season, but has gained interest from other teams as the Feb. 8 trade deadline approaches.
On Thursday, The Post’s Brian Lewis reported that the Nets rejected an offer of two first-round picks for Finney-Smith, reportedly coveted by the Lakers, Mavericks, Bucks, Thunder, Suns and Kings.
“It’s a different time,” Finney-Smith said in regard to blocking out the trade noise. “I would say back in the day it was easier because everybody didn’t have social media. But now that my kids — you know, my daughter got social media and stuff like that. It’s hard not to hear about it, but it’s just what comes with the time of the year.”
Dennis Smith Jr. (right foot soreness) was listed as questionable ahead of Saturday. Day’Ron Sharpe (left knee hyperextension) will remain out.
