Closing in on nearly 20 hours until the 2015-16 season tips off, Philadelphia’s starting lineup for the opening night appears to have taken shape. The 76ers will open their campaign Wednesday night in Boston.
The expectation for much of the offseason was that much of the projected starters were set; Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor were to man the front court, Robert Covington would be the incumbent small forward, and Nik Stauskas would be the likely two guard. Having a handful of point guards in camp, led by returning sharp shooter Isaiah Canaan, the floor general was the only position with much doubt clouding it.
Injuries, however, changed that plan as they so often do. Stauskas has been experiencing a stress reaction in his tibia for about a month. CSN’s John Finger reports that Brett Brown called him a game-time decision for tomorrow.
Last Friday, Covington went down with a knee injury. It appears he avoided a scare, as he is only projected to be out about two weeks. Still, that complicates the starting lineup picture for Brown on Wednesday.
So, that leaves voids at small forward and shooting guard. Keith Pompey today provided a projected lineup today and who to expect on the floor 7 p.m. Wednesday:
#Sixers listed projected starters vs. #BostonCeltics: Isaiah Canaan, JaKarrSampson, Hollis Thompson, NerlensNoel, JahlilOkafor.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) October 28, 2015
That means replacing Stauskas and Covington will be JaKar Sampson and Hollis Thompson, respectively. The only other option to start aside from those two would be Jerami Grant, who made 11 starts in his rookie season last year. He figures to see significant minutes, however.
It will be interesting to see how the lineup shapes out once Stauskas is fully healthy. Covington figures to reclaim his spot when he returns.
