Despite all the new faces, the 0-3 Sixers are not yet showing us anything new this season

The 76ers are the same as they were a season ago, if not worse.

That could change, but right now that’s the case.

Sure, they have somewhat of a different roster with the additions of P.J. Tucker, De’Anthony Melton, Montrezl Harrell, and Danuel House Jr., but they’re the same in the sense of their weaknesses.

Now, that’s not to say the Sixers will finish shy of winning 50-something games. But teams are going to come right at them based on the Sixers’ performances in the first three games against the Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and San Antonio Spurs.

Sixers coach Doc Rivers revealed Friday that Joel Embiid’s lack of conditioning is the result of dealing with minor plantar fasciitis this summer. This information was unsolicited after Embiid combined to shoot 38.5%, couldn’t keep up running up and down the court, and had bad body language against the Celtics and Bucks.

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But Embiid usually has slow starts to the season.

Generating bench points still is a major weakness. And despite getting tougher this offseason, teams still aren’t intimidated by what they are bringing. That was obvious when Boston guard Marcus Smart and Embiid got into a tussle during Tuesday’s season opener at the TD Garden.

Thinking Embiid tried to break his arm on the play, Smart reached out and grabbed the center’s leg, tripping him to the floor. Then Jaylen Brown, a swingman, got in Embiid’s face before the players had to be separated.

The Sixers were supposed to add grit and defense. But, for the most part, they were exploited against the Celtics and Bucks, who both were undermanned.

That’s why the focus heading into Saturday’s game against San Antonio was playing hard.

“It’s just continue to have effort, second effort, third efforts,” Melton said of what the Sixers need to work on. “We all know that it’s not going to be easy, though.

“We’ve got to go out there. We’ve got to do it, and we’ve got to continue to do it.”

Instead, the Spurs had the same success as the Celtics and Bucks, winning 114-105 Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Now the Sixers will try to get their first win against the Indiana Pacers at home Monday.

San Antonio’s wings lit the Sixers up just the Celtics and Bucks wings did.

But, as an Eastern Conference favorite, the Sixers aren’t expected to be 0-3 for the first time since the 2017-18 season.

Offensively, James Harden has been the highlight.

The point guard averaged 33 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists in the first two games. He followed that with 12 points, 12 assists, two blocks, and one steal on Saturday.

He’s doing a great job of dribbling to get his shot. The thing is, opposing teams are fine with that because it ensures no one else can hurt them. Tobias Harris is relegated to a stretch four in the corner, while Tyrese Maxey’s offensive strengths get stifled.

Harden had 525 dribbles compared to the combined 411 by his teammates against the Celtics.

He also was dribble-dominant against the Bucks. And the Sixers had a rough time getting into their offense after intermission in both games. They’ll be easy to defend in the playoffs unless they can get someone else involved.

The Sixers brought in Tucker, who is the quintessential role player. He set screens when not standing on the corner like Harris.

So the Sixers’ offense is geared toward Harden, Embiid, and Maxey having starring roles. But with Embiid in a funk, the Sixers relied on Harden and Maxey.

Rivers said he’s not concerned about the offensive shortcomings.

“It takes a while,” he said before Saturday’s game against the Spurs. “This is James’ first year through training camp. So not really [concerned]. It’s going to come. I can’t tell you when. It may come a little tonight, and then go away and come back.

“But you’ll know when we are clicking. I think it will be obvious, especially offensively. But we’re just not there yet. But we’re working on it.”

The backup center position also has been a problem.

Harrell, the 2020 sixth man of the year, is a solid offensive player. However, no one will confuse him with being a rim protector. Meanwhile, Paul Reed is a solid defender, but needs to be more consistent.

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Rivers wants them to dominate their roles better.

“You know what your role is,” Rivers said. “It’s not that hard to figure out. ... Staying in their lane and doing the right stuff. I think they will, I’m not that concerned by it.”

The hope for the Sixers is that things will come together in the coming weeks. So we’ll see if the defense tightens up. We’ll find out if Embiid can get into his groove, if Maxey and Harris become more involved, and if the bench steps up. We’ll see if the expected toughness emerges.

But until then, the Sixers aren’t any different than they were a season ago. And one care argue that they’re worse.