The Sixers will play their final preseason game Friday at home against the Minnesota Timberwolves. After that, it’s time for opening night in Boston against the Celtics next Wednesday.
The injury updates from Thursday’s practice were mostly positive:
No matter if Embiid plays or not, Nurse is looking to get his available regulars as much time as possible.
“We need to get … the main guys playing as long and as much together as we can tomorrow,” Nurse said. “That would be goal No. 1. Not quite sure how that’s going to look yet until probably the pregame presser tomorrow.“
It will also be hard to put too much stock into who starts Friday. Will Nurse prefer a traditional lineup with someone like Dominick Barlow at the 4? Will he use three guards? Could he maybe even use four with Kelly Oubre Jr. seeing time at the 4? It’s all going to be fluid because the team’s situation is fluid in general.
Something worth keeping an eye on — there’s been a lot made of the team’s new offense, which should feature more ball and player movement. How Embiid adapts to a more equal-opportunity offensive approach will be worth monitoring if he plays Friday and beyond.
One last note: it does seem like the vibes are fairly high heading into the regular season: