Sixers vs. Pacers: 3 things to watch for in first seeding game

Tobias Harris | Sixers (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Tobias Harris | Sixers (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
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(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

1. Rotations, rotations, rotations

The Sixers’ rotations were fairly consistent through three scrimmages, which would seem to indicate a degree of certainly on Brett Brown’s end. With three weeks of “training camp,” it’s not unsurprising for Brown to already know the direction he wants to go.

It’s not as though there isn’t wiggle room, of course. Brown said on multiple occasions that matchups will rule the day. There is also a stark and immeasurable different between scrimmages and regular season games.

You should probably keep an eye on the rotations as a result. The expectation is Brown will use a 10-man rotation in the regular season. We already know the starting five — Milton/Richardson/Harris/Simmons/Embiid — but here’s a brief outline of how I expect the second unit to shake out.

The first subs will be Furkan Korkmaz and Al Horford, who will replace Shake Milton and Joel Embiid, respectively. The next sub off the bench — and possibly the most used player in the second unit — will be Matisse Thybulle. Fourth is Glenn Robinson III, fifth is Alec Burks.

Brown might flip Korkmaz and Thybulle, although Korkmaz’s shooting does have a certain appeal in the absence of another ball-handler next to Simmons. My personal expectation is Burks will earn a greater role as the season progresses, but it’s clear Brown has his reservations at the moment.

As far as potential pairings, expect Brown to join Embiid and Milton at the hip. That makes sense, as Milton can run the pick-and-roll and get involved in other two-man actions next to Embiid. Conversely, you can expect Richardson and Simmons to spend more time together than they did in the regular season. Harris is the wayfarer who traverses both pairings.

If the Sixers do extend the rotation to 11 men, the obvious next in line is Mike Scott. For now, there’s no reason to expect minutes for Raul Neto, Norvel Pelle, Kyle O’Quinn, or Marial Shayok.