Five Takeaways From Philadelphia 76ers Preseason Opener

Sep 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Ben Simmons (25) during media day at the Philadelphia 76ers Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Ben Simmons (25) during media day at the Philadelphia 76ers Training Complex. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
1 of 6

On Tuesday, Oct. 4 at the University of Massachusetts, the Philadelphia 76ers opened their preseason schedule with a 92-89 victory over the Boston Celtics.

Sep 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center
Sep 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center

It took 831 days from the time the Philadelphia 76ers drafted Joel Embiid and Dario Saric (June 26, 2014) until the duo debuted (Oct. 4, 2016), but for many Sixers fans, it felt like a lifetime.

On Tuesday night, we got our first glimpse of both Joel Embiid and Dario Saric against another NBA team as the Sixers defeated the Boston Celtics 92-89 in their preseason opener.

The beginning of the game certainly wasn’t pretty, as the Sixers quickly went down 15-5 and struggled to chip away at the lead until the second half. While some fans are frustrated with the showing from the first half, it’s important to remember that this is just the preseason, and that experimentation is going to be heavy during this time.

There’s a lot that could be learned from the first preseason game of the season. This holds true for both fans and players, and there were a lot of subplots going on

With so many new faces sporting the Philly jersey for the first time this season, there’s plenty to take away from the victory, but five things in particular protruded more than the rest.