CAMDEN, N.J. — The Sixers wrapped up their final preseason practice Thursday, ready for one final game before the regular season. As they prepare for their preseason matchup against the Celtics, the plan is for the starters to take the floor to simulate a typical rotation, at least into the early part of the second half.
The starters took the court in Brooklyn, and despite a fair bit of sloppy play, they also managed to generate plenty of excitement, especially as LeBron James orchestrated the offense in the half court. Friday will be the first time the starters share the floor on their home court, and head coach Nick Nurse is looking to make the most of it, within reason.
“It always is a bit fluid and flexible,” Nurse said. “I think that we would like to get the majority of them into the second half. I think it's now time to play, go into halftime, come back out, get ready to go again to start what that feels like, and then it's probably fairly short after that.”
The NBA season is notoriously long, so there will be time to continue getting comfortable with the typical flow of a game, but the more the Sixers can responsibly achieve in the preseason, the better off they will be come Oct. 20, when they begin their season against the New York Knicks.
As they prepare for that season opener, the Sixers had an encouraging sight at practice, as Adem Bona and Anfernee Simons were seen participating in a team scrimmage. Both are set to miss Friday’s game, but they were full participants in practice, the team said.
“Obviously, [I] was hoping to get them in a game before the opener,” Nurse said of Simons and Bona. “Just because it's nice to kind of shake off whatever, get to see where they're at in that kind of game, rather than trying to see where they're at in a real live one. But it is what it is. Long season ahead. Hopefully, we'll get them back sooner rather than later.”
The need for Bona is clear after a season-ending injury to Ariel Hukporti. That, combined with Bona’s injury and the limited preseason availability of Joel Embiid, has led to a significant increase in small-ball lineups at center. It’s important to see who performs well in such a role in case the team needs it during the season, but Bona is the team’s only true rim protector with Hukporti out. They need more than him simply being available; they need him to take a significant step forward this season.
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The Sixers have been able to overcome the absence of Simons, largely thanks to Labaron Philon, but Simons' trusted shooting and decision-making are things the Sixers will rely heavily on this season, and the players are excited to see what he can bring.
“I’m super excited about Ant," Tyrese Maxey said. "Super excited about Ant, the little that we've seen of him. The way he shoots the ball. I mean, he's going to open up so many different things. He can play with so many different groups, so many different lineups because of the way he shoots the ball. I’m excited for him to join us.”
Aside from the injury, Simons is expected to be the first guard off the bench for the Sixers. He has the skill set to be a Sixth Man of the Year candidate if given the opportunity, and the Sixers as a unit will greatly benefit from the gravity and floor spacing he creates.
The additions the Sixers have made to both their starting lineup and their depth have put a target on their backs entering the season. While some teams will circle the calendar when they face Philly, Nurse attributed winning basketball to a willingness and ability to play for the full 48 minutes each game.
“The silliest thing anybody can think about is 'Oh, their record's this and we're supposed to be this and this ought to be 25 at halftime.' [That] just doesn't happen. Look at the history of even the great Chicago Bulls teams. They were always in a battle, and they win it down the stretch. You're a good team because you can make the right play down the stretch. These teams have great NBA players. They have youth. They have depth. They have athleticism. They have size. They have lots of things, and you've got to stay with it for 48 minutes.”
A healthy team will go a long way toward allowing the Sixers to play the full 48 minutes consistently, as will the team’s willingness to do what they can to support one another. The Sixers have consistently pushed back against the negative association commonly placed on the word "sacrifice," and Maxey did so once again as he addressed the media.
“Sacrifice doesn't always mean you gotta give up something. Sacrifice for me, you know, we're all working out with LeBron and working out together before practice, or me working out with VJ [Edgecombe], or VJ working out with [Anfernee Simons], me working out with [Jaylen Brown]. That's sacrifice. You kind of change your routine a little bit to try to get some camaraderie. That's the sacrifice we're talking about.”
The Sixers have voiced a unified willingness to sacrifice for the sake of the team and a championship. The final step before seeing if the team follows through on those sentiments comes Friday night. After that, the games begin to matter, and we should quickly know how committed these teammates are to each other and to winning a championship.
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