By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Philadelphia 76ers have had an eventful offseason. Between choosing Ben Simmons with the first overall pick, Dario Saric coming over from Turkey and Joel Embiid finally being healthy, this season is going to be a step forward for an organization that has sunk into rebuilding for the better part of the last five years. Although Ben Simmons' NBA debut will have to wait, there is still plenty to watch for ahead of the teams' preseason opener on Tuesday against the Celtics at the University of Massachusetts.
Here are six things to look for in the preseason opener:
Joel Embiid - After two years of rehab, Joel Embiid will finally play in NBA action for the first time on Tuesday night. Brett Brown announced his starting lineup over the weekend and surprisingly, Embiid will get the nod at center over Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor. Brown mentioned he plans to use Embiid in four and five minute bursts, so while he is starting, he won't play for extended periods of time. The biggest thing to look for in Embiid is his adjustment to the pace of play and just getting in that first game action. At center, he could very well match up against new Celtics big man Al Horford, so the Sixers 2014 first rounder will have a great test right out of the gates once he takes the court tomorrow night.
Dario Saric - The 22-year-old Croatian will be the one to benefit the most from the Ben Simmons injury as the power forward spot is Saric's natural position. He averaged 11.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game for his native Croatia in this year's Olympics before traveling to the states and joining the Sixers for training camp this past week at Stockton University. The Sixers acquired the rights to Saric in a 2013 draft night trade with the Magic that send Elfrid Payton to Orlando. Brett Brown described Saric and Simmons as 6-foot-10 "do-alls" and that's exactly what Sixers fans should expect from Saric. He may not be as quick as Simmons, but he plays extremely hard, has a good jump shot and is very dedicated on the defensive side of the ball.
Point Guards - With Ben Simmons sidelined, the point guard situation becomes a little more interesting. It looked like Simmons was going to have an opportunity to run the offense a lot, but now that responsibility will lie solely on Jerryd Bayless and Sergio Rodriguez. Bayless will lead the first unit while Rodriguez will come off the bench and head a second team that is likely going to include a combination of Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Jerami Grant, Nik Stauskas and Hollis Thompson. While Bayless has played in the NBA for his entire career, Rodriguez returns to the league at the age of 30 with a really good feel for the pick-and-roll offense, which is something that Nerlens Noel will benefit from. Look for T.J. McConnell to also get some action at the point after an impressive showing in the Summer League.
Richaun Holmes - Richaun Holmes is sometimes lost in the Sixers big man logjam, but with him being more of a natural four, he could get some more playing time with Simmons' absence. Holmes averaged 9.5 points and 5.7 rebounds in six Summer League games for the Sixers after averaging 5.6 points and 2.6 rebounds in his first NBA season. Not only can Holmes offer a better offensive upside to a guy like Nerlens Noel, he also has explosiveness to the basket along with similar defense and rim protection skills. During Bryan Colangelo's press conference on media day, he mentioned Holmes as one of the team's promising centers, so it's clear that the Sixers see something in the second-year forward.
Cat Barber - One of the more intriguing prospects to watch in the preseason is undrafted rookie free agent Anthony "Cat" Barber. With a team like the Sixers looking for shooters, Barber may fit in after three strong years at North Carolina State. He had an impressive junior year, averaging 23.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists 33 games, shooting 43.4 percent from the floor and just over 36 percent from beyond the arc. Expect him to get some extended playing time later in the game on Tuesday after the regulars have run for a while.
Nerlens Noel - Out of the three centers that the Sixers have on the roster, Noel is the only one out of the three so far to voice his thoughts on the matter. The third year center out of Kentucky said that entering the season with three centers is silly and that it needs to be sorted out. Noel said that his thoughts on the state of the roster will not affect his play, but we'll see if that's true when preseason action starts tomorrow as he's likely going to assume a bench role to start the season. There's no doubting Noel's assets on the defensive end of the ball, so it will be interesting to see if he tries to show more offensively to stake his claim as a potential starter on the roster. If Noel does remain on the team for the season, I think he could really succeed on the Sixers second unit led by Sergio Rodriguez.
