76ers Have Perfect Opportunity To Ruin Knicks' Championship Celebration

Opening night for the Philadelphia 76ers is upon us.

After months of talking and predicting who will land where and what team is better than whom, the NBA season is here.

The 76ers will be the first to grace America with its presence on a national stage when they take on the New York Knicks. Having to watch the Knicks accept their rings should be enough to light a fire under them and get them to a victory. But not everything is etched in stone, and they will have to play at their very best if they want to start out 1-0.

LeBron James and Jaylen Brown make their debut in a 76ers jersey, and they'll have one thing in mind: put the pedal to the metal. The 76ers are going to do what they can to tire out the Knicks, as they will surely look to push the ball every chance they get. The offense is going to be fun to watch if they can replicate what they did against the Boston Celtics in the final preseason game. 

These two teams have a storied history, and the Knicks got the better of them in their last matchup that saw them take out the 76ers in the semifinals of the playoffs. But now, this is a new 76er team that will be hard to plan for. James and Brown are here to even the odds, and they can do just that in different ways.

For James, it’s going to be about how he can get the team going and getting everyone involved early and often. James, throughout the preseason, made it a point to be the facilitator, and every chance that he got, he would push the ball down court in hopes that it led to an easy basket. As for Brown, well, he’s going to look to get to the basket, even if that means playing a little iso-ball to do it. 

That’s just the new guys; as for the rest, it’s a matter of placement. VJ Edgecombe will undoubtedly be the slasher for many routine plays, and that could lead to an easy basket for him or create an opening for Tyrese Maxey to shoot a wide-open three. Maxey and James have built quite the chemistry in their short time together. 

Last but certainly not least is Joel Embiid. Embiid is going to be up against Karl-Anthony Towns and will use his strength to try and overpower Towns. That with his speed should be enough to help this team to a win.

No matter how this game shakes out, the 76ers are back, and nothing feels better than watching some real NBA basketball for the first time in many months.