Sixers mailbag: Biggest preseason question, glue guys, and one reader’s thoughts about Joel Embiid serving as sixth man

The 76ers are just over two weeks away from opening training camp on the most anticipated season for perhaps any team in the league this season. Usually, the NBA takes a pause in August and September, but with the excitement from Jaylen Brown and LeBron James coming to Philadelphia, there’s been plenty to talk and write about to fill the space while everyone waits for the games to get going opening night, Oct. 20 at Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks.

As for me, I’m Chris Hine, the Inquirer’s new Sixers beat writer who will be covering the team in tandem with my good friend Gina Mizell. I spent the last eight seasons covering the Minnesota Timberwolves for the Minnesota Star Tribune, and I wrote a biography of their franchise player, Anthony Edwards.

» READ MORE: Just how much will the Sixers starting lineup have to sacrifice for one another? Here’s a look at the numbers.

I’m a Pennsylvania native who grew up in West Pittston, which is close to Scranton. So I’m really excited to be moving back closer to home and excited to cover what promises to be an entertaining and potentially historic Sixers season. Let’s get to your questions!

Q: What’s the Sixers’ single biggest issue heading into the season?” — (Bryan, @btoporek on BlueSky)

A: To me, it’s having the combination of health and availability with this roster to play enough minutes together to develop the necessary chemistry to become a championship contender. That talent is there. That’s step one in building a title winner. But I’ve learned, in covering the Timberwolves up close through two conference finals runs, that identity, reps and chemistry matter a lot during the regular season. The habits and characteristics a team develops, or doesn’t, show up in April. It’s one reason why the Knicks won the title last year. That team knew each other, it played together, it had an identity it could lean on when things got tough deep into the playoffs. That came after playing together through multiple playoff runs.

The Sixers will have to figure things out in one season, which is doable, but they’ll need their projected starting five to play together as much as possible. Of course, in back-to-back games, nobody is expecting James or Joel Embiid to play many, if any, of those. But I really feel that getting enough repetition as a five-man unit is paramount to what this team will or won’t accomplish in April, especially against some Eastern Conference opponents who have had the benefit of continuity year over year, like the Knicks, Detroit Pistons and Cleveland Cavaliers.

Q: What will the bench minutes look like? Will Nick [Nurse] go more than six deep in the playoffs? (@frantheman200 on BlueSky) and “Is there a role for Justin Edwards on this team?” — (@joephelan13 on Bluesky)

A: I’ll take these two together since they’re related in my eyes. Let’s start with Edwards. One of the butterfly effects of James deciding to sign with the Sixers is more than a few people on the team’s pecking order, in terms of minutes and role, went down a tick. Dean Wade, who I think could be a huge part of this team’s success, went from projected starter to the bench. And now with the other newcomers, including Anfernee Simons, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Labaron Philon Jr., the numbers just aren’t adding up in Edwards’ favor. That’s already nine potential players in the rotation — and those names don’t include any backup centers. It seems like he’ll be swimming upstream for rotation minutes as of now. With anyone looking to crack NBA rotations, defense is the way to the floor. Defend well, and coaches will usually find a way to get you out there.

» READ MORE: Five key stats to remember as the Sixers enter a season with title hopes

As for the first part of this question, it’s hard to say as of now, and I imagine that’s something we’ll piece together as we get to speak with Nurse in training camp and hear his vision for some of the blended lineups he may have in mind with the starters. Wade should and will likely play a big role, Simons can provide microwave scoring, Caldwell-Pope has the championship pedigree and familiarity with James from their time in Los Angeles, along with the motivation that he still has something left in the tank at 33 years old.

In the playoffs, it’s going to be tempting for Nurse to stick with a tightened rotation, though, especially if the starting five can defend at a higher level than some analysts anticipate. Even coaches with supposedly deep teams sometimes get a little tense in going multiple guys into their bench when everything is on the line.

Q: In 1986, the Celtics made the always injured center Bill Walton the sixth man. He helped win a title and he won the sixth man award. Instead of wondering what nights Embiid can play, why not move him to sixth man? This way your starting five knows their roles, and he gives you instant offense off the bench. — (@tomg18 on Bluesky)

A: This is the kind of outside-the-box thinking we like in mailbag questions! Well, let’s start off by saying that this is an unrealistic scenario for someone like Embiid. Another thing I’ve learned in eight seasons covering the NBA, starting matters to players. It’s a source of pride and a sign of status, essentially, to say you’re a starter. Suggesting someone move to the bench can be a massive blow to that player’s ego, and a coach has to handle any such move with care.

If this ever happened with Embiid and the Sixers, it’d be the top story on all the ESPN talk shows for two weeks. But I think what you’re getting at here is Embiid taking on a reduced role, while not coming off the bench. That’s something that could make sense given the roster construction and efforts to preserve Embiid for the long haul. Having him play 25-30 minutes per night — especially if those minutes are with the other starters — and having him available for more games, is better than playing him a usual complement of minutes that risks wearing him out or injuring him. Better to cut back his minutes a bit first before ever considering asking him to come off the bench.

Q: Who are the best candidates for low usage glue guys with the new roster? Someone like KCP or one of the younger guys? — (@bremerdangorst on BlueSky)

A: Wade fits this. He hasn’t had a usage rate above 12.9% in his career, according to Basketball Reference. He can be a defensive contributor who cedes usage to those main scorers on the floor with him at the same time. As you said, KCP can also be this model of player (career-high usage rate of 19.5%). They seem to fit the profile of the exact kind of bench contributors a team like this needs.

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