Following a successful offseason that saw the team land LeBron James and Jaylen Brown, the 76ers entered training camp with a purpose. The team hasn't won a championship since 1983, and last made the Finals in 2001. The new-look squad looks to turn the tide and be a defining team in a newly strengthened Eastern Conference.
But before the team took the court for practice at their Camden, New Jersey, facility, Nick Nurse took time to set expectations for the season in a 30-minute meeting, per a report by ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
“The theme of it was to try to set the mission and vision of the team for the year,” Nurse told McMenamin. “That's easy to do, but then you got to have the plan right underneath that.”
Per McMenamin's report, Nurse laid out his expectations, which he called pillars, as well as the offensive and defensive schemes he plans to implement. To start the season, he also emphasized transition offense and accountability as a key feature of the team.
Article Continues BelowTeam members said the conversation itself was helpful. New 76ers guard Anfernee Simons spoke about his thoughts on the 30-minute meeting in a quote obtained by McMiniman for his piece.
“Just setting the tone of what we expect as a team,” he told ESPN. “Just pointing out the expectations for us as a unit, what it's going to take for us to reach those expectations. It was a good meeting. Obviously, it gave us a little bit of motivation to go out there.”
The 76ers start the preseason with a matchup against the New York Knicks, a familiar opponent, as they will face them to open the regular season.