By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
After securing back-to-back road victories for the first time in nearly two years on Sunday, the Philadelphia 76ers returned to practice in Camden, New Jersey this afternoon and there are a slew of updates regarding some injured players, most notably a big step in Ben Simmons' recovery.
Here's a rundown of updates from practice:
Ben Simmons:
During practice, Brett Brown gave the No. 1 overall pick his first half-hour point guard test. They plan to have Ben play the point on both ends of the court upon his return. Simmons also achieved a significant first this afternoon, shooting free throws without his walking boot and two sneakers on for the first time since surgery.
"He's coming along in leaps and bounds. It's all moving in an extremely positive way." -Brett Brown on Ben Simmons
Joel Embiid asked Simmons how he was feeling and the former LSU product just smiled, signaling a positive mood in his recovery.
Brett Brown on @BenSimmons25: "He’s still doing some spot shooting. But as far as moving around, that has not happened yet."
— Jessica Camerato (@JCameratoCSN) December 13, 2016
Joel Embiid:
After missing Sunday's game with some minor elbow inflammation, the Sixers medical update indicated that he will play on Wednesday when the Raptors come to town. During practice, Embiid saw some more time at the four, which means the team plans to experiment with different things when all three bigs are available.
#Sixers Embiid on being more of a 4 today pic.twitter.com/5FFfTHp7ig
— Tom Moore (@tmoore76ers) December 13, 2016
Nerlens Noel:
Noel made his season debut on Sunday in Detroit but departed prior to the half after suffering a left ankle sprain. After the game, Noel said he should probably be ready by the next game, but he's officially listed as questionable. If he does not play tomorrow, he expects to play on Friday, per Tom Moore of Calkins Media. Noel went on to say that with the way the team has been practicing, two bigs will be playing together more often and that he believes that he can cover the perimeter better than Okafor or Embiid. He referred to those two as his "dawgs" when speaking to the media. He also shed some light on the roster situation he's been dissatisfied about, sounding open to giving it a go for the time being.
#Sixers Noel: 'I think while we're in this situation, why not experiment?'
— Tom Moore (@tmoore76ers) December 13, 2016
Sergio Rodriguez:
The Sixers starting point guard is expected to return on Wednesday against the Raptors after missing Sunday's game with gastroenteritis. T.J. McConnell fell an assist shy of a triple-double filling in for Sergio against the Pistons.
Jerryd Bayless:
After signing a three-year, $27 million deal this offseason, Bayless has only played in two games due to lingering left wrist soreness. At this point, one has to wonder why the veteran point man has not just had surgery.
Misc. Notes:
- Dario Saric will be seeing a lot more time at small forward with Embiid, Noel and Okafor all in the picture moving forward.
- Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot was sent back to the 87ers on Tuesday and is expected to play for them tonight.
