PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) -- There’s going to be a basketball game Tuesday night in South Philly. It’s the first of two scheduled preseason matchups for the Sixers. They play the Boston Celtics at 7:30.
Observers will be interested to see how some of the new players — shooters Danny Green and Seth Curry — will compliment Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
"We just gotta come together," Embiid said. "I feel like we’ve been doing a great job with the system that we put in place, so I think it’s gonna be great, but hopefully as soon as possible."
And after hearing nothing but positive reviews, so far, what kind of shape will Embiid be in for the start of the preseason?
Another open question: How is veteran big man Dwight Howard going to fit in? Sounds like his role could be on the second unit — and it won’t be surprising to see him take on a lot of leadership responsibilities.
Then there’s first-round draft pick Tyrese Maxey. He’s gonna be excited to be out there in his first NBA action.
Mainly, this is the first time we get to see Doc Rivers coach the Sixers in a game -- even though the games don’t start counting until next Wednesday, when the season opener is scheduled.
The new head coach joked that he’ll be taking notes just like the media.
"You guys might think I’m one of the Philly writers doing the game tomorrow," he said. "I don’t literally take notes, but I take a lot of mental notes."
Rivers has said that the key guys will play the first half, and the second half will feel more like preseason basketball. He said he will avoid calling a lot of timeouts in this first game.
"Conditioning is really important, timing, our pace," he said, "and the only way you get that is by not stopping the game."
While Rivers is looking to improve conditioning, he needs to make sure the main guys are healthy for the opener on Dec. 23.
"At the end of the day, as someone told me 100 years ago, 'The No. 1 ability is availability.' So, we need everybody to be available for the real games," he said.
Philly sports fans have become accustomed to seeing the 70,000-capacity Lincoln Financial Field sit empty for Eagles matchups. It was the same with Phillies games at Citizens Bank Park over the summer. That place holds 43,000 to 45,000. That said, it will still be strange to see Wells Fargo Center empty.
In recent seasons a packed Center has become one of the best home-court advantages in the NBA. The Sixers lost two games at Wells Fargo Center last season before everything was paused because of the pandemic.
Although they played in front of no fans in the Disney bubble, the Field House in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, is not a modern, gigantic, professional sports arena.
"I don’t know the answer to how things are gonna be when we’re at home without our fans," Rivers said last week. "The Philly fans are some of the best fans in sports."
Nearly everything about this game will be an adjustment for the Sixers -- and Sixers fans.