76ers Tip Off Round 1 Versus Brooklyn | Gameday Report

The 76ers (54-28, No. 3 in the East) are poised to begin their 2023 playoff run, starting with a Saturday matinee meeting with the Brooklyn Nets (45-37, No. 6 in the East).

The Sixers won all four of the regular season meetings between the teams, including the regular season closer on April 9.

“I’m ready to play, ready to have some fun, ready to go out here and compete,” Tyrese Maxey said two days later.

Following that regular season finale in Brooklyn, the Sixers have relished four consecutive practice days ahead of hosting Saturday’s series opener. 

“This week really helped us as far as our practice, scouting, and going over what Brooklyn likes to do,” James Harden said after Friday’s practice. “For me, I feel good.”

Harden added that he’s ready to embrace the intensity, extended minutes, and physicality ahead:

“I’m extremely prepared. I know I’m going to play 40 minutes [Saturday] at the minimum. Training my body, getting the right lifts in, to be able to go out there and play 40, and be efficient and effective in those 40 minutes.”

Maxey, who finished the regular season as the league’s fifth-best 3-point shooter (43.4% 3fg), feels this team’s health and depth sets it apart as the playoff run begins.

“I think everybody’s prepared,” Maxey said. “Everybody’s going to be ready, if they have to step in and play, if it’s one minute, one second, or five minutes in a row, I think everyone’s prepared, and ready to play.”

Add a full season’s worth of time to develop chemistry, and Harden feels all the pieces are in place.

“This year we had a full year under our belts,” the 2017-18 MVP said. “We know what to expect. We know what works, we know what doesn’t work. We know what our strengths are. So we’re trying to get to those strengths as much as possible, possession by possession, quarter by quarter, game by game.”

Harden finished the regular season as the NBA’s leading assister (10.7 apg), while Joel Embiid earned his second consecutive scoring title (33.1 ppg).

Friday, Embiid was officially named an MVP finalist once again.

Following Game 1 Saturday, both teams return to South Philadelphia for Monday’s Game 2 (7:30 p.m. ET). The series then shifts to Brooklyn for Games 3 and 4 (Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET and Saturday, 1:00 p.m. ET, respectively).

Saturday’s Round 1 opener is a 1:00 p.m. ET tip.

“[Brooklyn is] athletic, long, a lot of really good shooters,” Harden said of his former team Friday. “They do a really good job of spacing the floor. We’ve got to be on point, from the tip of the game tomorrow until the end of the series.”

Nets newcomer and Philadelphia native Mikal Bridges leads Brooklyn in scoring, after averaging 20.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in the regular season (26.1 ppg as a Net). Due to his move from Phoenix to Brooklyn at the deadline, Bridges played in a league-high 83 games.

In his Nets debut on Feb. 11 (against the Sixers), Bridges scored 23 points and grabbed six boards. Four days later in Miami, he scored a season-best 45 points, plus eight rebounds, five assists, two steals, and two blocks.

Bridges joined the Nets alongside Cam Johnson, who averaged 15.5 points and 4.4 rebounds this season. Spencer Dinwiddie averaged 16.5 points per game for the Nets, and Nic Claxton averaged 12.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game.

As of Friday evening’s injury report, there are no injuries for the Sixers. Brooklyn’s Ben Simmons (back nerve impingement) is out.

Tyrese Maxey on what he learned in his first two playoff runs:

“Every game is different. Every game brings different challenges. Coaches make adjustments both ways, every single game… Every single possession matters. There’s a game within each possession. You learn what your opponent is doing. You learn their habits, you learn their capabilities. You have to be aware of them, and go out and execute from there.”

Watch: ESPN / NBC Sports Philadelphia

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