Health issues nag Sixers, Clippers and Bucks as they try to erase 2

Health issues hang over the Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks, with all three teams trailing 2-1 in their first-round playoff series going into their respective Game 4s on Sunday.

Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns are mostly healthy but facing elimination after falling behind Minnesota 3-0. No NBA team has recovered from that deficit to win a series.

Joel Embiid scored 50 points as the 76ers got their first victory against the New York Knicks in Game 3, but the reigning MVP played with a bulky brace on his surgically repaired left knee while revealing after the game he is dealing with lingering symptoms of Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis.

Kawhi Leonard acknowledged after the Clippers’ 101-90 loss to the Dallas Mavericks that his balky right knee didn’t respond well coming out of Game 2, his first appearance in more than three weeks.