CAMDEN, N.J. – The Sixers are officially focused on the New York Knicks.

"It's that time," Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said after the team's practice on Sunday, just two days away from the Sixers' season opener at Madison Square Garden.

There were bumps and bruises along the way – plus a season-ending injury to reserve center Ariel Hukporti – but the Sixers got through three weeks of training camp and preseason without any of their starters dealing with significant ailments. Particularly for Joel Embiid, a participant in every drill of every practice this month, that is a major success.

Much remains up in the air about this team, especially as a slew of critical bench players missed all four of the Sixers' exhibition games. But these last few weeks have been instructive. On the eve of opening night, this week's 5 Sixers thoughts details the lessons learned from training camp and preseason:

Transition offense can be this team's superpower

The Sixers have all of the personnel they need to be among the NBA's elite transition offenses. LeBron James, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe can all start or finish a fast-break possession at a high level. Jaylen Brown can be one of the best transition finishers in the NBA. If an initial push does not lead to a shot, the Sixers' pace can still allow Joel Embiid to operate as a trailer; the Sixers will be able to easily flow into their best half-court offense pitching the ball back to the former NBA MVP.

But these Sixers do not just want to dominate in transition; they want to manufacture as many transition opportunities as possible. In the very first test drive of Nurse's star-studded starting lineup, the Sixers netted multiple baskets or foul calls beating the opposition down the floor after a made basket. Maxey and Edgecombe should make for terrific partners for James on plays like this:

All preseason, the Sixers' intentionality about hitting the ball ahead, crossing the half-court line as quickly as possible and speeding the game up was apparent.

"I think the ball travels faster through the pass. So I think if you do want to play with pace, being able to get it up the floor via the pass is always important," Nurse said on Oct. 8. "I think the increased full court pressure that's kind of developed over the last two seasons in the league, if you're getting jammed in the back court, you obviously can throw it ahead. Now you're playing in maybe not numbers advantage, but you're playing in smaller numbers, i.e. four-on-four or three-on-three or whatever. So that's always important, too."

The Sixers' challenge – Brown referred to it as their "responsibility" on Friday – is to maximize that transition aggression without going overboard. The Sixers had major turnover issues in the preseason, which multiple players chalked up to oversharing the ball. Yes, faster pace and more possessions will equal more turnovers, but the Sixers have a lot of work to do to clean up what has been a bit of a mess so far. 

“I think we want to play fast and I think there has been a little bit of carelessness – or sloppiness might be a better word," Nurse said after Friday's preseason finale. "...We've just got to kind of be a little more sure of [the passes]. Take them a little further. Get a little better angle. Make sure it’s just not floated up for grabs. I think there’s some real opportunities there... But, listen, I think that’s part of us cleaning up, polishing up, getting some more time together a little bit. But I think I’m happy with at least they’re looking. I think the pass-first mentality is there. Now we've just got to make sure they’re a little bit more sure passes.”

MORE: Can improved transition offense trigger defensive leap?

Defensive rebounding is the weakness to watch

"No matter how much firepower we have offensively," James said on Oct. 3, "if we're not cleaning glass, if we're not rebounding, we're never going to get out in transition."

James is right, and as of now the Sixers have a whole lot of work to do on the defensive glass. They were ravaged by opposing crashers in preseason, continuing a trend over the last few years. Especially because they want to play offense in the open floor and could have a suspect defense, it is imperative that the Sixers hold opposing possessions to just one shot as often as possible.

Nurse said on Friday that he believes his team is doing a decent job of finding potential crashers and boxing them out, and that the struggles have come chasing down longer rebounds.

"That's certainly going to be one of the focuses," Nurse said. "We're playing a really good offensive rebounding team on Tuesday night that really thrives off it, as these guys do. We have to continue to watch the film and continue to drill it, and just, impress upon our guys that we need to make that next reaction to finish the defense."

MORE: Does Jaylen Brown have a new home in the dunker spot?

LeBron James will be the primary decision-maker

Just a few days into training camp, Nurse laid out James' role in the Sixers' new-look offense pretty well:

"I consider him a great offense creator. I don't necessarily mean scorer, I just think creator and a table-setter and all that kind of stuff," Nurse said on Oct. 1. "And I think that's where I could see, if it isn't bringing it up and starting [the possession], it's probably going to be first pass anyway to [him on] the wing and then we get into our actions and he's kind of seeing what's there and he's creating offense for others.”

That is largely what it looked like in James' two preseason games; he infrequently brought the ball up the floor and may not be the nominal point guard, but when the 41-year-old is on the court the Sixers' offense will be catered to his ability to read the floor and react to what he is seeing – whether that comes in transition or the half-court setting:

The Sixers are right to start with James' table-setting and go from there; he is one of the best passers the game has ever seen. And he can develop unique relationships with each of his running mates, even when narrowing it down to half-court offense: James and Maxey can be dynamic screening for each other and James can also set up Maxey as a movement shooter; Edgecombe will thrive cutting off of James; Brown can seal smaller defenders inside to set up a high-low pass or come off a screen in the middle of the floor; Embiid can pick and pop, pick and roll, post up or operate as a dribble hand-off hub.

There is a whole lot for James to work with here.

"We're getting there," James said on Friday. "I mean, obviously we're a couple weeks in, so we're still working on our rhythm, working out our kinks, and it's not going to be perfect. Obviously, we're just getting together, so it's not going to be perfect. But we've got some things we can build on."

MORE: LeBron cements himself as the Sixers' quarterback in preseason debut

The backup center situation will be ever-changing – but Jabari Walker is a real option

No member of these Sixers has boosted their rotation stock in preseason more than Walker. Three weeks ago, he looked like the 14th player out of 14 on the team's standard roster; four straight standout preseason performances later he has a strong rotation case – at a different position.

In the wake of Hukporti's season-ending injury – plus the absences of other bigs in Adem Bona, Dominick Barlow and Tacko Fall – Walker almost exclusively slid up to the five during preseason action. Nurse lost a lever worth pulling in Hukporti, and the injuries suffered by the team's remaining depth options at the five are concerning. That is why Walker's emergence is so critical.

How much better does Nurse feel about Walker as a small-ball center now that preseason is over?

“Well, I think he's played very well. And again, it's kind of just been out of necessity that we've had to play him there. It's maybe helped him a little bit. I think primarily he's a pick-and-pop player. So when he's at the five, he's going to get more matchups and more opportunities to show some of that," Nurse said after Sunday's practice. "So that's been good. I think it's maybe given him a little more focus and we just haven't had much choice... We were going through some stuff and I've just got him at the five spot in all these actions we were running and he said, 'Can I do some at the four?' I said, 'Absolutely not. We need you at the five right now. Just stay right there and keep doing what we're doing.' So I think it's been beneficial for both us and him to see him get a lot of minutes and he’s played very well."

Walker is the Sixers' best rebounder; whenever Nurse gets him on the floor his team will have a better chance of preventing second-chance points. Walker borders on giddiness when discussing the state of his refined shooting mechanics. He has moved his feet better on the defensive end. He recently asked Nurse about being used as a cutter more often. His teammates trust him.

When Embiid is sitting on Tuesday night, Walker's case to go up against Karl-Anthony Towns and old friend Andre Drummond is legitimate. So is his confidence:

"I think I'm getting way more comfortable with it, and I think it just adds value being able to do everything, and I just want to help the team win and be valuable, be an asset. So if that's what they ask me to do, then I want to be solid in it. Do what's needed. Use my abilities to complete it to the best of my ability. I think naturally, I'm a four. That's what I work out as most. I feel comfortable in the corner, shooting the threes, and getting off the catch and just moving around the perimeter. But as the five, I'm starting to be comfortable with setting picks and popping and setting harder screens, and it's just a different mentality. But every day I'm getting better at something right. So that's what they need from me. I think to rebound at that level, I play physical, so it's right up my alley. I can figure it out." – Jabari Walker on Friday morning

MORE: Before trade, Brown went to Morocco with two soon-to-be teammates

The bench guard mix will be worth monitoring all season

As veteran sharpshooter Anfernee Simons missed all of preseason and a handful of practices – while rookie Labaron Philon Jr. stood out in both settings – Nurse was asked if he views those two guards are in competition with each other for minutes. His answer indicated Philon would have to do a whole lot to leapfrog Simons in the pecking order.

"I think they're different players, and I think the competition is not direct competition," Nurse said. "I think the competition is, like, who's the guard off the bench in that rotation, right? I'm going to lean towards probably a nine-year veteran, as long as he's healthy. I think that the talent that he has and all that kind of stuff, and I envision those three, VJ, Tyrese, Anfernee, sharing that spot as much as possible. LP gets a crack, probably in pretty short stints, at the start. That's how I would see it. And if Anfernee is out, LP's now in that rotation."

Look for fellow veteran guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to be the last man into Nurse's rotation if Simons is indeed available on Tuesday; Caldwell-Pope is nominally a guard but does not function as a ball-handler. A two-time championship starter, Caldwell-Pope is respected for his smarts; he knows the ins and outs of fitting into a star-laden NBA roster. That, plus his vastly superior size and defensive acumen, makes him the clear favorite to play over Philon.

But Nurse clearly has an appreciation for Philon's skills, particularly when it comes to creating shots in quick bursts and organizing an offense. Is there a world in which Philon leapfrogs Caldwell-Pope, adding another ball-handler and another small guard to the regular mix? It is not the cleanest fit, but could give the Sixers more offensive dynamism.

Another layer to the Simons/Philon dynamic: Philon proving to be in the same category of value as Simons would make the veteran expendable at the trade deadline, and his $6 million salary would go a long way towards helping the Sixers upgrade other areas of their bench. But that will not be worthwhile if the Sixers cannot adequately replace Simons' elite three-point shooting and secondary scoring punch. That is a lot to ask of a rookie guard, especially one sized like Philon.

There is no question at this point that Philon will find pockets of games and pockets of the Sixers' schedule to be on the floor with a chance to shine. But can he supplant either of Simons or Caldwell-Pope on a team that already has so much ball-handling?

MORE: NBA executives discuss 2026-27 Sixers in annual GM Survey