For the 76ers, Monday was all about preparation for their season opener against the Boston Celtics.
Joel Embiid had a towel wrapped around his waist and his blue practice jersey was drenched in sweat as media members entered the gym. Both courts were occupied by players who stuck around for post-practice shooting drills.
Every player on the roster practiced, with Jared McCain, who remains sidelined after surgery on his right thumb, being the only exception.
» READ MORE: VJ Edgecombe outpacing Sixers expectations — and bringing his lofty goals into view
“Listen, we’re at the stage now where we’re doing game prep,” coach Nick Nurse said of Wednesday’s contest at TD Garden. “So everybody was involved in all of what we were doing today.
“So we were just getting ready for Boston, cleaning up some stuff, and one more of those quickies tomorrow before we hit the road and then it’ll be game time.”
The Sixers are eager to erase memories of last season’s 24-58 record. It marked their first losing campaign since they finished 28-54 in 2016-17. They also want to see how their new fast-paced, free-flowing offense fares in an actual NBA game.
“Listen, like I said this the other day, I think we’re digging ourselves out of a pretty big hole,” Nurse said of last season. “I think that we’ve made a lot of progress, and we’ve worked hard, but you’ve got to go play the games now for real. And then you’re going to really learn about your team and what progress you made, and much of the hard work has paid off, and can it get results.
“I mean, I think it feels good right now, the changes we’ve made. … I think it’s a tremendous test for this group Wednesday to go on the road and play a team that’s got a bunch of guys playing together for forever. I know they have changes too, but they still have a core group that’s been together forever and we’re looking forward to the test.”
» READ MORE: Can Nick Nurse work his magic to overcome the Sixers’ injuries and lack of on-court chemistry?
While the Celtics do return several role players, the team will have a different look from the last two seasons. And a lot of the changes are a result of Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury. With Tatum out, the 2024 NBA champions made drastic roster moves and underwent a semi-rebuild to get under the second luxury-tax apron.
Over the summer the Celtics traded Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers and Kristaps Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks. They also didn’t re-sign Al Horford, who accepted a two-year deal with the Golden State Warriors.
Boston isn’t void of talent, though.
It received standout shooting guard Anfernee Simons from Portland in exchange for Holiday. And the Celtics’ roster changes haven’t altered their style of play.
“They’re going to play a lot of guys that can shoot the ball,” Nurse said. “They’re going to try to get you in mismatches, and they’re just really good at playing one-on-one and scoring. And if they don’t score, they find the open man. And that’s usually a three-ball.
“So it’s the same. Some of the names have changed and the pieces have moved a little bit, for sure. But they’re playing, doing some similar things.”
