Sixer Sense: Scrimmage Buzz Can't Paper Over Thin Guard Depth

By the 76ers Nightly Desk · Monday, October 5

Philadelphia opens its preseason slate tonight against New York, still unbeaten and untested at 0-0. The Sixer Sense called today's scrimmage encouraging, but that read sits next to a backcourt that lost three bodies on September 21 and hasn't replaced one of them.

76ers Nightly artwork — Illustration by Hoops Nightly.

What's actually new since yesterday?

The Sixer Sense reported today that the scrimmage left an encouraging sign, but paired it with the same line this desk has been watching: depth concerns. Nothing about the backcourt changed — Kyle Lowry, MarJon Beauchamp and Tyrese Martin are still gone as of September 21, and no replacement has been added since.

Who actually plays the backup guard minutes tonight?

Caleb Love, Rayan Rupert, Duke Miles and Jameer Nelson Jr. are the names left on the roster behind Maxey, Simons, Edgecombe and Philon. None of them played an NBA minute for this franchise before this month, which is the real cost of losing Lowry, Beauchamp and Martin in one day.

Does Bona play against the Knicks tonight?

Bona's foot-and-leg issue still isn't cleared; October 5 — tonight — is listed as his earliest possible return, not a confirmed one. Until Nurse confirms it pregame, treat that date as a target the record is tracking, not a guarantee he suits up against New York.

How does this matchup look on paper?

New York finished last season 53-29, outscoring opponents by 6.4 points per hundred possessions; Philadelphia finished 45-37 and essentially broke even at -0.1. The Knicks also ended the Sixers' season in May, sweeping them in the second round. None of that counts tonight — it's preseason — but it's the gap this roster is built to close.

What's the number that actually matters this week?

Three games in seven days, starting tonight, each unofficial. The only real number on the board is 0-0 — not a record, a blank page. Preseason minutes are the first evidence on how LeBron, Brown, Embiid and Maxey share the floor, and that evidence starts tonight.

The verdictTonight is about which bodies take the floor, not a result — it's preseason. The real pressure point heading into the October 20 opener is still the backcourt hole left on September 21.

Is Adem Bona playing against the Knicks on October 5?

He's targeted for an October 5 return from his foot and leg issue, but that hasn't been confirmed as a clearance to play.

Who replaced Kyle Lowry in the Sixers' backcourt?

Nobody yet. Lowry, MarJon Beauchamp and Tyrese Martin all left on September 21, and no addition has followed.