The Philadelphia 76ers are off to a perfect start this season, standing among the league’s few unbeaten teams. They’ll look to extend that momentum as they open their NBA Cup campaign against the Boston Celtics tonight. After falling short in the first two editions of the in-season tournament, the Sixers aim to change their fortunes, though they may be missing a few key pieces, even as questions on Joel Embiid come to light.

So far, the former league MVP has played in three out of four games for Philadelphia. Clearing all doubts, the 31-year-old is all set to lead his team into this in the NBA Cup opener against Boston. This should be a huge boost for the Sixers, as they will be looking to keep their perfect start to the season alive, even though the result will not affect their regular-season record. This will also allow Joel Embiid to get some redemption against the Cs from the opening night disaster.

In the season opener against Boston, Embiid looked terrible as he scored just 4 points and 1-of-9 from the field in his 20 minutes. However, since then, the veteran big man has picked up his slack as he put up 20 and 25 points against Charlotte and Washington, respectively. Although that clears the uncertainty around the superstar center, the Sixers will still miss a few of their key pieces against the Celtics tonight.

Philadelphia 76ers injury report before their NBA Cup opener

Even though Joe Embiid is back, the Philadelphia 76ers cannot take the Boston Celtics lightly, as they are entering this NBA Cup matchup with back-to-back wins. The Sixers’ injury list features the likes of Paul George and Jared McCain. The veteran forward is yet to make an appearance this season as he continues to recover from his knee injury. Last season, George did not have the best of times.

He averaged only 16.2, which is well below his career average of 20.6 points. Nonetheless, Paul George’s presence is still quite important for the Sixers because his replacement, who is 21 years old, Justin Edwards, hasn’t been able to match George’s production yet. Edwards is only averaging 4.3 points this season, while shooting 46.2 percent from the field. This is nowhere near the veteran forward’s production, even during one of his worst seasons of all time.

Either way, moving on, the Sixers will also be without Jared McCain tonight. The sophomore star is out with a thumb injury, which has stopped him from even one of his team’s four regular-season games so far. Although it’s hard to say that Philly has missed McCain, it’s still safe to say that the team would feel much more comfortable with him around rather than without him. However, Philadelphia’s injury problems don’t end there, as they will also be without one more player.

The player we’re talking about is forward Dominick Barlow. The 22-year-old rising star will not be playing tonight or the next game for the Sixers after suffering an elbow injury, as per ESPN. This is a massive blow for the franchise as Barlow has emerged as a solid backup option this season. Even though he’s played just two games, the youngster has looked the real deal. Over those two games, he has averaged 7.5 points while shooting 50 percent from the field. Speaking of which, why don’t we take a look at Philly’s starting five?

Philadelphia 76ers’ starting five for tonight

Tonight’s NBA Cup matchup against the Boston Celtics will be a huge test for the Philadelphia 76ers. However, with Joel Embiid ready to take the floor, things should be a lot easier for the Sixers. But the question is, who else apart from him will feature in the starting five for this opener? Well, here’s who we think could start for Philadelphia:

The stage is set for the in-season competition opener, as the Sixers will hope to get the better of the Cs for the second time this season. But where can you watch this action live? Well, the game is set to tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET and will be telecast live on Amazon Prime Video. So, you can grab your popcorn as it is set to be a star-studded affair as the 76ers take on the Celtics.