NEW YORK — The star-packed Sixers won’t exactly have a casual start to their season.  The team has made the trip to New York for its regular-season opener at Madison Square Garden. Before the action tips off at 7 p.m. ET, the Knicks will raise their new championship banner and receive their rings.  “Take it every minute, every moment,” Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said before the Sixers’ Tuesday morning shootaround, surrounded by a considerable scrum of reporters. “You’ve got to try to just relax, stay comfortable, play with confidence. “For us, we’re on the road, so we’ve got to be together, stay together. We’re all we’ve got all year. We’ve just got to come out and be ready. Stay focused.” The Sixers went 1-3 in the preseason, although those results merit little attention.  Their starters shared the court twice, in losses to the Nets and Celtics. The offensive firepower was tantalizing at times. LeBron James showed his passing wizardry, Jaylen Brown scored efficiently in isolation, and the Sixers looked fearsome as a team in transition. There were also heaps of sloppy possessions and missed jumpers.  “It’s hard to know until we get there tomorrow,” Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said Monday. “Other than some minutes and some conditioning, you don’t get much of a read on anything in the preseason. I feel good about the work that we’ve put in, the focus the guys have had. I feel great. Joel (Embiid) is ready to go. … So there’s a lot of things to be positive about.  “I think it’s a pretty tough test to start with for the group, but I’m certainly looking forward to it. I’m interested to see where we are and I’m interested to see our compete level and our fight in a tough environment tomorrow.” Rookie guard Labaron Philon Jr. likes the sound of a matchup with the defending champions.  “They’re getting their rings,” Philon said. “I feel like that’s exciting for our group to see that and be on the other side of it. I would say you can’t get better motivation than seeing that, then stepping on the floor and playing against them. I feel like it’s going to wake some our guys up to want to play at that level as well.  “Definitely for a rookie, I’ll be motivated to give it my all and do everything we need to get to that level that those guys were at last year.” Philon wasn’t part of the Sixers team swept out of the 2026 playoffs in a lopsided second-round series with the Knicks. Maxey’s had some great moments over the years at the Garden, but he obviously does not have fond memories from that series. The two-time All-Star has never minded a spotlight.  “I think if you prepare, that takes the pressure away,” Maxey said last week. “My dad used to tell me, ‘Proper preparation prevents poor performance.’ We’re trying to prepare the right way so when we get out there to perform, we execute what we’ve got to execute.” Whatever happens Tuesday night, the Sixers will have 81 games left on their schedule. It’s still a big, intriguing occasion. “For us, (showing) the chemistry that’s been built over training camp,” Caldwell-Pope said. “Just trying to stay together. We’ve got the talent and we’ll see if we can just put it together.” This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser. ...read more read less