CAMDEN, N.J. — Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey have been doing a superb job leading the Philadelphia 76ers on both ends of the floor. They’re third in te NBA in offensive rating, eighth in defensive rating and have the best record in the league right now. Offensively, they’re both so good that they could probably run just one play half the time and put the Sixers in a good spot to win. But Nick Nurse knows that it can’t be that simple.

After the Sixers' practice on Monday, after they opened up a win against the Indiana Pacers by running an empty-side pick-and-roll with Embiid and Maxey on the left side of the floor, Nurse was asked how he balances calling the same Embiid-Maxey set that gets results while also mixing in other things.

“In that game last night, it seemed like we came out with the package of side screen-and-roll stuff and…it's just like, Tyrese lay up Joel [good shot], we were getting good shot after good shot and making 'em,” the Sixers' head coach said. “And you're thinking, ‘Geez, seven minutes have gone by,’ and we kinda like everybody to touch the ball a little bit more and things like that.”

The Sixers went to the action against the Washington Wizards, helping them go on a third-quarter scoring spree. They used it in a big win over the Boston Celtics, too. But Nurse knows that he has to make sure the whole team gets involved.

“And I think we did a pretty good job of backing off it a little bit to kind of keep everybody a little bit more involved. But, that was certainly like going through my mind…five, six minutes into the game. It's just a matter of me and or Tyrese and Joel calling another set that just involves something different,” Nurse said.

While the Sixers have a deficiency in ball-handling outside of Maxey and Embiid (who doesn’t have elite handles but controls the ball for whole possessions because of his dominance inside the arc), it's key to keep players involved to make sure the offense doesn’t get stale. Plus, with Philly staggering its stars, it ensures that guys are in a better rhythm when they have more responsibilities on the court.

The Sixers saw amazing results from Embiid and James Harden's two-man game last season but becoming over-reliant on it (among many other things) spelled doom for them in the playoffs. They know now that, although the stars will handle the majority of the offensive duties, they have to be well-rounded.

On top of hunting easy offense in the fast break more frequently, Nurse has installed numerous simple, quick-hitter looks into the Sixers' offense. One of them that gets guys other than Embiid and Maxey involved as scorers is the set where a player cuts to the middle of the floor behind Embiid to spot up for a straightaway triple.

Having a diverse playbook will be important come playoff time. Nurse will surely get the Sixers running other sets and actions as the season goes on. The great results early in the season should only inspire hope for what’s left to come in Nurse's first season at the helm.