The Sixers’ 2025 preseason will start Thursday at 12 p.m. ET with the first of two preseason games against the Knicks in Abu Dhabi.
Here are five things to watch for the Sixers in the preseason:
What’s different about the offense?
Joel Embiid said on Day 1 of training camp that the Sixers have changed their offense “quite a bit.”
“I’m in the dunker (spot),” he said with a smile. “Let me just chill in the dunker and everybody else does whatever they want.”
We imagine Embiid will still be a major piece of the Sixers’ offense and not a mere spectator when he’s available. It also does sound like the Sixers intend to play a more guard-centric, up-tempo style.
“It’s certainly something we want to do as far as just creating more of a passing, ball movement type of situation,” Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said Sunday. “There has been a lot of drill work leading up into (training camp) and it’s starting to take shape pretty good. … Again, I keep saying we’ve got a little bit more speed, we’ve got a little bit more perimeter play, we’ve got a little bit more guys that can get involved in actions. So we want them touching the ball.”
Edgecombe’s game and jumper
VJ Edgecombe has drawn glowing praise from all corners of the Sixers’ practice gym.
“VJ’s a special talent,” Tyrese Maxey said Friday of the No. 3 pick. “One of his talents that a lot of people don’t really use is how hard he plays on both ends of the floor, whether that’s offensive rebounding, defensive rebounding, guarding the ball, playing in transition.
“Those are little things that a lot of people don’t do, so I think he’s going to be really good at that. He likes to learn, he wants to get better. The sky is the limit for him.”
Though the preseason results won’t matter, it will be interesting to see Edgecombe’s jump shot (on top of his sensational athleticism and all the tools Maxey named). Nurse mentioned at media day that Edgecombe made “great strides” with his shooting during the offseason. The 20-year-old said Saturday he’s improved his arc and consistency.
The backup bigs
Andre Drummond said at media day that he’s “100 percent to go” after struggling with a left big toe injury last season.
Nurse has also noted Drummond’s fitness level.
“I think he’s at least 20 or so pounds lighter than he was a year ago at this stage, so that’s a good start,” Nurse said Sunday. “He can probably keep going on that just a little bit more, but it’s helping him and his toe feels better. That’s obviously helping him. He’s moving a little bit better and he’s been playing very good.”
Drummond and second-year big man Adem Bona appear to be the main names behind Embiid at center. Bona’s coming off of an excellent end to his rookie season and won a EuroBasket silver medal this summer with Turkey.
According to Drummond, Bona is “jumping two inches higher than he did last year.” According to Nurse, the 22-year-old is “breaking all the weight room records.”
“It’s competitive,” Nurse said of the Sixers’ backup center outlook. “There’s three, four, five of them, depending on how far you want to go with it. … It’s Bona, it’s Drum, it’s (Johni) Broome, it’s (Jabari) Walker. (Dominick) Barlow maybe a little bit, too. … I think they know they’re in a battle. If you came to watch practice and you were watching that position, you’d see a lot of competition going on between that whole group.”
Walker, Barlow ‘in a very similar situation’
Both Barlow and Walker seem to have plausible routes to earning a larger role than the typical two-way contract player. Each could boost their case with strong showings in the preseason.
“They’re in a very similar situation, very similar positions,” Nurse said after Day 2 of training camp. “Barlow’s constantly on the glass, keeping the basketball alive, etc. I did talk to Jabari about that. Jabari can really rebound the ball. … He’s one of those guys that emphatically snatches rebounds out of there and he’s really good on the defensive glass especially.
“I just kind of reminded him yesterday that I didn’t quite see that, but I did see it today. … He was a lot more active kind of open-floor attacking, which we’re trying to get him to work on. He does have a handle enough and the size in the open floor to take guys on with some shoulder hits and some things. It’s a work in progress, there’s a ways to go on that with him, but he was very good today.”
The 22-year-old Barlow is 6-foot-9 with a 7-3 wingspan. He hasn’t been an outside shooter in the NBA (10 for 40 from three-point range across 96 games), but Barlow’s a good athlete who views his versatility as a strength.
“When I was at Overtime Elite, I think I played every position — two, three, four, five,” he said following Sunday’s practice. “The game is changing so much. You see a team like Houston run double-big lineups. You see Golden State run Draymond (Green) at the five and he’s traditionally undersized. I think the game is just evolving.
“On a night-to-night basis, you see different matchups and different positions, so I don’t worry so much about position. It’s just continuing to play a role and find ways to help our team be as effective as possible.”
How healthy can Sixers be on opening night?
The Sixers would love to minimize the injury woes that overwhelmed them from the very start of last year. It’s not a massive stretch to say injury-free preseason games would be successful preseason games.
Embiid (left knee) practiced on Saturday and had a planned day off Sunday. George (left knee) has progressed to doing individual on-court work. Jared McCain (right thumb) is out indefinitely.
Trendon Watford has been dealing with right hamstring tightness, which the Sixers have called a “day-to-day” injury.
“We are getting closer,” Nurse said of Watford’s status. “I would hope and I think that we’re going to see him in the practices at some point (in Abu Dhabi). … That’s what the hope is, I believe.”
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