The Philadelphia 76ers' 2022-23 season tips off in less than a month. Training camp begins next week for the Sixers, who are still eager to break a five-year run of playoff bids that end before the Eastern Conference Finals.
Joel Embiid is out to try again to take home the MVP honors. James Harden will look to bounce back from a disappointing start to his Sixers tenure. An improved supporting cast surrounds them as they look to each win the first championship of their careers. The storylines around Philadelphia are plentiful.
Before the Sixers begin training camp in South Carolina, here are the three hottest burning questions that the team faces heading into the 2022-23 season.
3. Who will be the Sixers' fifth starter?
The Sixers starting lineup will feature Embiid, Harden, Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris barring a completely unforeseen change. One spot remains up for grabs. Two newcomers, P.J. Tucker and De'Anthony Melton are the best bets to fill the void.
Tucker is now on the third team of his tour of Eastern Conference contenders and may call this one home for the rest of his career after inking a three-year deal. A quintessential 3-and-D player, Tucker will be extremely useful on both sides of the ball and would fit nicely in Danny Green's place.
Melton, who was acquired via trade for Green and a first-round draft pick, offers a little bit more offensive upside and is a strong defender but is just 6-foot-2. The Sixers relied on Green heavily to guard opposing wings, making Tucker the more likely guy to fill in his spot, even if Melton is the superior player at this stage in their respective careers.
Rivers' affinity for veteran players, among several reasons, makes Tucker the likely pick to be the starter. Melton is still good enough to snatch the spot from the rugged veteran. The competition to be the final starter will be worth keeping an eye on.
2. Will Tyrese Maxey take another big step forward?
Tyrese Maxey burst onto the scene for the Sixers in his second season. The fun rookie who showed flashes of greatness became a bonafide star and the second-best player on the team in just a year. What's in store for year three in the league for the Kentucky product?
The expectations for Maxey are monumental. Anything short of vying for an All-Star game will likely be seen as a letdown across Philly. His quickness and shooting make him super tough to guard. He overcomes his small, slender frame with the ability to blow past anyone and the shooting touch to convert shots in the lane and behind the arc.
17 points (7-9 FGM) for Tyrese Maxey.
That's a career-high for a quarter!
📺: TNT pic.twitter.com/2xP01wGnqz
— NBA (@NBA) November 10, 2021
Harden's playmaking truly unlocked what Maxey could be: a high-powered offensive sparkplug. But he has the potential to be more than that. Maxey can be more than just someone who occasionally runs the offense.
The next step for Maxey is creating even more offense for others. The Sixers should once again experiment with him leading the bench unit while the starters rest to get him those reps. Breaking down the defense starting at a standstill on a consistent basis, on top of what he can already do with a cut or in fastbreaks, will make him one of the more feared guards in the entire league.
The need for Maxey to improve yet again comes in conjunction with the final burning question that the Sixers face.
1. How good will James Harden be?
The Sixers re-signing James Harden to a two-year contract was one of the biggest surprises of the offseason. It was always a matter of when, never if, Harden re-signed but agreeing to such a small deal was shocking. Now that he is officially on board, his effectiveness remains a topic of conversation.
Harden looked nothing like the do-everything superstar fans are accustomed to seeing. No one was expecting the scoring-champion version of him but they were expecting a new dynamic to the offense that would give Embiid a star scorer and passer all in one. Instead, he looked passive on the floor way too often, shot with brutal inefficiency and even gave fans a Ben Simmons-esque playoff performance by attempting just a pair of shots in the entire second half of the Sixers' final game of the season.
Much of Harden's struggles could be attributed to issues in both of his hamstrings that he developed before being traded to the Sixers. His debut with the team was pushed back because of it and it's possible that those lingering troubles never truly went away. Although injuries can partly explain Harden's struggles, it doesn't change the fact that Philly needs more from him.
Harden, even when he isn't at his best, is an automatic 20-point, 10-assist guy. The latter stat is the most important, as he is the most important playmaker on the team. The days of dropping 30 points without breaking a sweat are behind Harden and that's perfectly fine. Embiid can shoulder the scoring load but Harden has to do his part. Becoming an efficient, fearless scorer again is crucial.
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