The Philadelphia 76ers held Media Day 2022 at the team’s practice facility in Camden, NJ on Monday. It marked the beginning of training camp and the new NBA season, with Joel Embiid, James Harden, and the entire team present.
We heard from every player at the podium, as well as Doc Rivers and P.O.B.O Daryl Morey. Many questions were asked, some more pressing than others. In the end, we learned a fair amount about the team and how this group plans to approach the 2022-23 season.
Here are five major takeaways.
Sixers media day: P.J. Tucker and James Harden wanted to be here… two years ago
As the NBA investigates the Sixers for tampering with P.J. Tucker, the newly signed 38-year-old made a comment on Monday that’s sure to damage their case. According to Tucker, he and former Rockets teammate James Harden wanted to team up in Philadelphia two years ago. Earlier in the press session, Joel Embiid thanked Harden for making the addition possible with his new contract. So, yeah, the Sixers might have tampered.
What’s important, of course, is that P.J. Tucker did in fact sign with the Sixers. He’s locked in for the next three years and is widely expected to join Embiid and Harden in the starting five. We have heard Harden suggest that he wanted to come to Philly originally — before the Brooklyn trade — so it’s interesting to hear Tucker echo the sentiment. It’s a testament to the organization and the city, but frankly, it’s mostly a testament to Embiid. People want to play with him.
Sixers media day: “Toughness” is the word of the day
If there was an overarching theme at Sixers media day, it was “toughness.” After last season’s wet-fart ending against Miami, the verdict on Philadelphia was simple: they had all the talent and none of the backbone needed to win a championship. The Sixers crumbled time and time again under pressure. Toughness, both physical and mental, was sorely lacking.
That’s no longer the case. Daryl Morey went out of his way to focus on getting players who fulfilled the mandate on toughness. The biggest fish was, of course, P.J. Tucker. He has a championship under his belt and has never been one to back down in the face of adversity. There’s also De’Anthony Melton, Montrezl Harrell, Danuel House — all guys who play both sides of the ball and take pride in their physicality.
The returning members of the team also stressed mental toughness and greater competitive spirt. Tobias Harris, for example, discussed turning defense into offense. Joel Embiid wants Philly to be the best defensive team in the NBA. Matisse Thybulle joined the chorus too. We know Paul Reed wants to get out the mud.
There’s every reason to believe this Sixers team will approach next season with a renewed sense of passion and mental fortitude. For the first time in Embiid’s career, there isn’t controversy or major roster turnover hanging over the start of a new season. Only the desire to improve and reach the promised land.
Sixers media day: Healthier days ahead… hopefully
Media day is often used to catch us up on all the ailments, past and present, facing the team. The focus was naturally on James Harden, who spent last season dealing with the aftereffects of a lingering hamstring injury.
Harden joked about losing “100 pounds” over the summer, but the joke is derived from his clearly improved physical condition. We have heard time and time again in recent months about how hard Harden is working, how much better he feels, how much better he looks. We can only wait and see at this point, but there’s reason for optimism. The former MVP spoke candidly about the “dark places” he was in because of the injury and his diminished athleticism last season, but he claims to be in a good space now. When he’s right, very few players can match Harden’s impact on the offensive end. On the shortlist of players who can is Joel Embiid. If those two are operating at or near peak condition, the Sixers will be extremely hard to slow down.
Harden isn’t the only Sixer with a notable injury update, however. We must once again mention P.J. Tucker, who underwent minor arthroscopic knee surgery over the summer. The 37-year-old is evidently healthy and ready to go for training camp, but it will be worth keeping a close eye on Tucker in the coming months. He is 37 years old and was just signed to a three-year contract.
Also of note was something Furkan Korkmaz mentioned: he dealt with nerve damage in his right hand after the All-Star break last season, forcing him to change his mechanics and subsequently lose rhythm. That would explain the inexplicable shooting slump from a player who, for most of his career prior to last season, was one of Philly’s most reliable deep threats. If he can return to form, Korkmaz could fight for minutes in the second unit.
Sixers media day: Everyone has been in the gym
No one can question the Sixers’ work ethic. Tyrese Maxey is the long-reigning king of work ethic: Doc Rivers said he and the coaching staff had to kick the 21-year-old out of the gym on multiple occasions this summer. Maxey also said he took his first vacation ever, but that it was too much of “doing nothing” for his taste.
Rivers also spoke glowingly of Paul Reed and Matisse Thybulle in conjunction with Maxey, saying “nobody has outworked” those guys. Reed claimed to have improved his vertical by eight inches, and Thybulle went into detail about his efforts to improve as a shooter and open-court ball handler.
We have seen the tape of Harden in the gym, be it working out with Maxey and teammates (Harden evidently organized team activities and workouts near his house in LA) or dominating open runs. The Sixers fanbase knows well enough to not trust scrimmage footage, but again, no one can doubt that Harden has been focused on improving his conditioning and getting back to peak form.
Even Joel Embiid has been in the gym. The 7-footer joked that he spent all summer on the couch, but Georges Niang went on to say Embiid has been in the gym “like he’s trying to make the team.” Embiid has improved every year since he entered the league, and the MVP runner-up still has room to improve in 2022-23. We know he wants nothing more than to win, and he will do everything in his power to do so.
Sixers media day: It all starts with defense
The Sixers’ focus on toughness naturally equates to a greater focus on the defensive end. Joel Embiid said it plainly: he wants Philly to be the best defense in the NBA. There’s no doubt Philly has the personnel. Tucker, House, and Melton are all plus defenders who will play major roles. Thybulle is still in the mix (fresh off his second All-Defense berth), and Embiid is one of the best defensive anchors on the planet.
For Embiid, the Sixers’ pursuit of top NBA defense starts with him. He plans to “stop waiting until the fourth quarter” to lock in. That’s probably an oversimplification of Embiid’s approach — he’s an elite defender even at half-speed — but when you carry the offensive burden Embiid has carried the last two years, it comes with certain sacrifices. If Harden is closer to prime Harden, however, and if Maxey can take the next step, then Embiid can theoretically refocus more of his energy on the defensive end.
He will also have more help because of the new additions. There’s also Tobias Harris, who played remarkable defense in the playoffs. If he can commit to that side of the ball in the regular season, with the majority of the offensive burden now split between Embiid, Harden, and Maxey, then we could get the most well-rounded basketball of Harris’ career.
Multiple players, from Harris to Melton to Thybulle, were sure to note the defensive potential of this roster. The Sixers want to compete harder than ever next season, and that starts with digging in on defense. Embiid is the head of the snake, but the entire roster is positioned for success on both ends.