Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse is known as one of the best coaches in the NBA. Thanks to an extremely busy offseason for general manager Daryl Morey, he now has a whole new bag of toys to play with.
Philly is Joel Embiid’s team, and Tyrese Maxey is the Robin to his Batman. Around those two franchise pillars, though, a lot has changed. Paul George, the most influential free agent on the market, left the Clippers (after nearly being traded to Golden State) to eventually sign a four-year, $212 million contract with the Sixers. Caleb Martin, who proved himself a valuable contributor over the past three seasons with the Heat, followed suit. Buddy Hield was traded to the Warriors to make room for exciting rookie Jared McCain and veteran sharpshooter Eric Gordon. Andre Drummond returned after two years in Chicago. And in the final splash of the summer, The French Olympic revelation Guerschon Yabusele left Real Madrid to sign at least one veteran.
Nurse was a master at guiding the Toronto Raptors to the 2019 NBA title, masterfully putting together a team that included Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry (who returns for a second year in Philly), Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, Marc Gasol and others to prevent the Warriors from winning their third straight title. With exactly two months until opening night against the Bucks, Nurse now has plenty of time to create a variety of lineups that will give the rest of the league a run for their money. Here are three ideas to get you started.
PG: Tyrese Maxey
SG: Kelly Oubre Jr.
SF: Paul George
PF: Caleb Martin
C: Joel Embiid
This is likely the Sixers’ starting five, but it’s worth noting how drastically different it is from last year. Tobias Harris, De’Anthony Melton, Nicolas Batum, Hield, Paul Reed and Mo Bamba left after logging nearly 8,000 minutes. The same goes for Patrick Beverley, Marcus Morris and Cam Payne, who were traded mid-season last year.
George is 34, but the Sixers are still counting on him to be near his peak. His presence will be a huge relief for Embiid, who, even in his ninth active NBA season, is still the target of criticism about his fitness. With Maxey, this trio will be able to attack and score from anywhere on the court. Add in the overqualified Oubre and Martin, and you have a team that will give any team in the league a hard time.
PG: Tyrese Maxey
Secretary General: Jared McCain
SF: Ricky Council IV
PF: Paul George
C: Guerschon Yabusele
Most NBA fans would be surprised to learn that the Sixers ranked 11th in the NBA in pace last year. Embiid has a well-deserved reputation as a hard worker, but Maxey’s style alone has helped Philly inch closer to the top 10.
Embiid will need his rest, but the Sixers shouldn’t feel helpless when the former MVP isn’t playing. Instead, Nurse can use those minutes as an opportunity to pick up the pace and blitz opposing teams. Maxey will still be there to push the pace, and George’s presence on the court will allow Nurse’s offense to continue to thrive on the rare occasions when things slow down in the half-court.
The rest of the time, Maxey can take the ball and go, and he’ll now have horses to run with him. McCain was the best transition shooter in college basketball during his year at Duke, and he’ll naturally draw the defense’s attention.
That will pave the way for Council, an undrafted free agent out of Arkansas who impressed with his raw athleticism every time he got playing time his rookie year, and Yabusele, who showed a fearlessness at the Paris Olympics that he never got a chance to display in his two years with the Boston Celtics. His poster-worthy dunk over LeBron James in the gold medal game was the highlight of the tournament, and with this team, he’ll have the opportunity to do many more.
PG: Kyle Lowry
SG: Eric Gordon
SF: Paul George
PF: Caleb Martin
C: Joel Embiid
Maxey finished last season second in the league in minutes per game behind DeMar DeRozan, but even he needs a break sometimes. When he sits, Nurse can minimize the impact of his new power forward’s absence by extending possessions and turning the game into a rock battle. While our previous lineup could outrun anyone, this one looks to be the most YMCA team ever.
Lowry has seen it all, and at this point in his career, he knows all the tricks of the trade on offense and defense to remain a valuable part of the roster. With Gordon as his teammate on the back end, that’s 34 years of NBA experience alone.
George isn’t the above-the-basket player he used to be, and Martin’s game is mostly on the floor, too. Between the two of them and Embiid, there will be no shortage of pump fakes, up-and-unders, forced fouls and other cautious veteran moves to put points on the board. If Nurse really wants to mess around, he can replace Drummond with Martin to create a two-peat look with Embiid, but we don’t want to make the Wells Fargo Center crowd’s eyes bleed.
Being able to change pace so suddenly will make the Sixers incredibly difficult to prepare for. Early in the season, opposing teams won’t be ready for such a quick change of pace, and late in the season, after Nurse has tweaked and refined things and all the new pieces have had time to solidify, the Sixers will be even more deadly. If their stars stay healthy, this excitingly revamped team could be Philly’s best chance at a title.
