Eight Hurt 76ers All Have the Same Return Date: Tomorrow

By the 76ers Nightly Desk · Thursday, October 15

Philadelphia's last 36 hours produced no transaction, no new diagnosis and no change to an 0-0 preseason slate. The next data point is Friday night against the team that just beat them by 38, four days before the record starts counting.

76ers Nightly artwork — Illustration by Hoops Nightly.

Did anything actually happen since Wednesday?

Not really. No transaction, no new injury news, no change in the rotation. The only real development is logistical: Friday's rematch with Boston closes the preseason, then the schedule goes quiet for four days before the opener at Madison Square Garden on October 20. Philadelphia is 0-0 and stays that way until a game actually counts.

Why do eight injured players share the same return date?

Dominick Barlow, Jaylen Brown, Adem Bona, Anfernee Simons, Joel Embiid, Tacko Fall, LeBron James and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are all questionable, and every one of them is targeted for Friday's game. That is not a mass clearance, it is a tag that moves with the calendar. Ariel Hukporti is the real outlier: his right-side Achilles injury carries a projected return of October 2027, not October 16.

Does Adem Bona deserve the bigger role the beat keeps floating?

The Sixer Sense ran two pieces today on Bona's shot at real minutes, one of them flagging a weakness he still has to fix. He is questionable himself for Friday, which undercuts the case for leaning on him right now. The opportunity is real; the health is not yet settled enough to bank on it.

Is Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's health actually a concern?

He came off the injury list October 1, then landed back on it October 10, this time for rest rather than anything physical. That is the ordinary cost of a 33-year-old in year 13 playing three exhibition games in six days. Nothing in that pattern points to a real issue heading into Friday.

What does Friday actually tell us before the games start counting?

Little on the scoreboard — preseason results do not carry over — but plenty on health. Whoever plays for Boston and Philadelphia on Friday is whoever the coaches trust four days out from an opener at Madison Square Garden. Watch who sits more than who scores.

The verdictThe record stays 0-0 either way, and the calendar is what matters now: one more exhibition against Boston, then the games that count start October 20 at the Garden.

When do the 76ers play next?

Friday, October 16, at home against Boston, the preseason finale on NBA TV.

When does the 76ers regular season start?

October 20 at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks, broadcast on NBC/Peacock.