October 17, 2026
Bill Streicher/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Sixers need Jaylen Brown and LeBron James to be significant helps on the defensive glass.
PHILADELPHIA – The Sixers have gotten their five starters through preseason.
While youngster VJ Edgecombe got the night off on Friday – he has no injury, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said, just three exhibitions and plenty of intense practices already under his belt – the players he will start next to on Tuesday night when the 2026-27 season kicks off got
In front of a near-capacity crowd, the Sixers had Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown, LeBron James and Joel Embiid on the floor against a Boston Celtics team which did not even bring its primary rotation pieces on the trip to Philadelphia. As much as the Sixers wanted a dress rehearsal of sorts, their final exhibition was more about cardio than anything else. Nurse wanted all of his players to get at least one preseason appearance that included a full half of action, a 15-minute halftime break and a return to the court. At least that mission was accomplished.
What stood out from the final Sixers game of the year that will not count for anything? Diving into the performances of three of the team's stars:
The primary buzzword of training camp and preseason was sacrifice, but Embiid continues to push back against it.
"I’m against the concept of sacrifice. I think the way I explained it is, do what you do best, and we’re going to support you," Embiid said on Friday. "I don’t really believe in sacrifice. I believe in JB and letting him do what he does best. I believe in Tyrese, pushing him and letting him do what he does best. Bron, VJ, everybody in this locker room. Like, 'Hey man. We've got your back. Good, bad shot, just make the right play over and over. Let’s play together.' So, yeah. I don’t believe in that concept. I don’t think anybody has to take any backseat. If you've got a shot, wide open layup, do what you do best. We got your back and then we’ll go from there."
MORE: Embiid and LeBron have different takes on "sacrifice"
Of course, it is easier said than done to simply make the right play every time down, especially when there are so many options at your disposal. Embiid's nightmarish eight-turnover preseason debut exemplified some of those challenges. Embiid once again struggled with ball security on Friday, but as the game went on he grew more and more comfortable. Embiid eventually ended up registering a terrific, team-leading scoring performance – including a thunderous, contested, one-handed slam he would not have been able to pull off this time last year:
EMBIID IS MOVING RIGHT NOW pic.twitter.com/Ag9WdAnDbM
— MAL (@MindOfBron) October 17, 2026
"I thought I would never dunk again," Embiid joked. "Yeah, I guess I don't know what happened. I kind of got possessed, but yeah, whatever. I mean, I think my mind kind of changed me there. I was going to lay it up, and then I saw he came over, tried to block it. I was like, 'I guess I’ll try to dunk it.' I'm glad it worked out."
MORE: Takeaways from Sixers' final preseason game
If James' impact on the Sixers is clear in any one way in particular, it is the team's eagerness to pass the ball. The Sixers dealt with significant turnover issues in the preseason, and many of those turnovers came when their attempts to push the ball down the floor quickly went awry. Nurse pointed out that increased pace creates more turnovers but acknowledged that his team has to strike a better balance between selflessness and cautiousness.
“I think we want to play fast and I think there has been a little bit of carelessness – or sloppiness might be a better word. Just, again, I think that the looks are correct. We've just got to kind of be a little more sure of them. Take them a little further. Get a little better angle. Make sure it’s just not floated up for grabs. I think there’s some real opportunities there. But we certainly can’t come down and you look and you see, everybody can see that opportunity at the rim on a post-up and then all of a sudden it’s going the other way for a probably kick-out three. So it’s kind of a double-edged sword there a little bit. But, listen, I think that’s part of us cleaning up, polishing up, getting some more time together a little bit. But I think I’m happy with at least they’re looking. I think the pass-first mentality is there. Now we just got to make sure they’re a little bit more sure passes.”
It is abundantly clear that playing in transition will – and should –be a priority for this group. But Brown spoke to the "responsibility" the Sixers have in pushing the pace.
"Definitely want to play fast, but definitely have to take care of the ball," Brown said. "So that’s the responsibility that we have to have, and we’re still developing what our identity wants to look like, you know what I mean? We’ve got to get to sprint-to spots. We’ve got to get down the floor, and we’ve got to find out what type of spacing that we want to get to. We had a couple plays where we didn’t honor each other’s space, and that led to turnovers, so we’re still developing it. We got some good footage today. It feels good to get everybody out there and look forward to getting better."
The Sixers hope to eventually create a lethal transition attack, with James serving as the quarterback but not the only source of quality looks. But with multiple teammates capable of leaking out and beating defenders down, James' ability to execute long-range passes with perfection will go a long way in tandem with his other skills:
LeBron was a SWISS ARMY KNIFE in his Philadelphia debut. 👑 pic.twitter.com/TmIB3wE5Zy
— Witness King James (@WITNESSKJ) October 17, 2026
Is Nurse willing to live with more turnovers if it means the Sixers are playing with better pace?
“I think," Nurse said, "that no is my answer to that."
MORE: Can Sixers' improved transition offense lead to defensive improvement?
These Sixers have spent three weeks trying to project an image of self-awareness. That means not spending too much time reveling in their incredible talent level – and acknowledging their weaknesses. Defense is one that has been continually mentioned, but defensive rebounding specifically has come up a whole lot. Brown grabbed eight rebounds on Friday, with seven coming on the defensive glass and a few of those being strong, contested boards.
Like the team the Sixers played in their preseason finale, Nurse pointed out, their season-opening opponents are adept at crashing the glass. What does Brown see his role being within the Sixers' plan to stay afloat as a rebounding team, particularly ahead of Tuesday's game against the New York Knicks?
"Got to get in the fight," Brown said. "Get on the glass. Boston does a good job. They teach that to crash hard, and I think we did better [at] matching their level of intensity [the] second and third quarter, but definitely room for improvement. We’ve got to see that, and we’ve got to do that for other teams. We’ve got to be the harder crashing team. We’ve got to win the margins."
Friday's finale completed a three-week crash course for Brown, whose acclimation in Philadelphia has been about far more than learning the tendencies of new teammates. Personally and professionally, the adjustment has been significant.
"Me individually, I think I’ve made my strides just getting familiar with the system, just getting familiar with the city, the facility, all of that," Brown said. "Just getting settled in my place and then as a group. I think we’re just building. I think we’re just setting the mentality that we need to set. I think we just are inching closer every single day, so we’ve got to just continue to emphasize the type of mentality that we want to have and the accountability that we want to have and keep moving forward."
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