Sixers Wrap Up Preseason Friday With Big Questions Unanswered

PHILADELPHIA — The 76ers close out the preseason Friday night against Boston, and the most anticipated season in recent franchise history still has its biggest questions unanswered.

LeBron James, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey have all sat out the exhibition schedule so far. Whether any of them appear in the finale will be the story of the night.

The new-look roster took shape in Mike Gansey’s first summer running basketball operations, when Philadelphia acquired James and Jaylen Brown. Brown scored 22 points in his Oct. 5 preseason debut and has been the early bright spot.

The regular season opens with an immediate test. Philadelphia visits the defending champion Knicks on Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. on NBC and Peacock, and will watch New York raise its championship banner before tip-off.

The Knicks swept the Sixers out of the playoffs last spring and have been a thorn at every turn, including two preseason meetings in Abu Dhabi.

Friday’s game tips at 7 p.m. at Xfinity Mobile Arena. After that, the games start to count, and the experiment of pairing James with Embiid begins for real.

How much the stars play Friday may say little. How healthy they are Tuesday will say everything.