Training camp notebook: The start of something new

CAMDEN - Saturday by Adventure Aquarium marked the start of something new for the Sixers.

For Tyrese Maxey, it was the first formal, professional practice with a long-time friend.

"It's cool. I think it's just funny, man. We see things, we talk all the time. For years, we've talked all the time. So certain things that I see, like, if it's funny or something like that, I can look at him and he's going to laugh, too," Maxey said of Trendon Watford.

"Other than that, I think Trendon's going to be good for us. He's somebody who's in that same age as me, where he's like the bridge."

In Maxey's eyes, he and his pal-turned-teammate connect to both the youngsters and the more-seasoned veterans. The fan-favorite guard is certain it will be good for their team. 

"He's a good personality, someone that's really going to fit in and I think he'll be talented on the court, too. He fits a role that we've needed."

Unlike some pick-and-roll partners at the forward positions he's had in the past, Maxey views Watford as a capable ball-handler. It opens up the possibilities of inverted actions. Maxey can envision setting contact screens and ghost screens for Watford, creating confusion for the opposition.

For prized rookie VJ Edgecombe, the something new started before Saturday. But it's still an adjustment. He's lifting heavier and resting more. Recovery is more of a priority for Edgecombe now than he was previously used to it being. 

He's also mixing more vegetables into his diet. Edgecombe is adamant that his diet isn't that bad. He has the candy intake under control. Still, he's fighting some inhibitions. 

Oh, to be a kid.

The something new also harkens back to Nick Nurse's comments at media day: the shooting. Edgecombe has made some mechanic changes to improve his shot.

"I was flat. I had a flat shot in college. So now my arc is way better than it was...a month ago, or maybe three weeks ago, and it's more consistent," he said on Saturday.

What mechanical tweaks has he made?

"Just getting it up, to be honest. Just getting it up. Keep my elbows high. Just getting it up. I tend to just shoot the ball quick. But I'm more focused on it, paying more attention to details on my shots."

For Joel Embiid, well, you'll never quite know what the something new is until he takes the court. The best he'll give is some words and a grin, letting you know that he's not being serious.

There have been mentions of offensive changes. Embiid is keeping it under wraps.

"I don't know. I'm in the dunker and let me chill in the dunker," he said with a grin. "Everybody else do whatever they want."

Spare notes

• Maxey feels he's reached pro status when it comes to can openers. He also claims that he was completely serious with that whole ordeal. You don't become the world's best dog dad over night!
• Paul George did an individual workout session on the court for the first day of camp as he recovers from offseason knee surgery.
• Trendon Watford is day-to-day with right hamstring tightness. He, too, participated in an individual workout.
• Nick Nurse described the practice as competitive and "live action" almost entirely from the jump. It was a defense-oriented session.
• That is funny because Embiid said that the focus was on offense.
• As it pertains to Embiid's report card from day one of camp, Nurse provided the most encouraging update anyone's heard in a long, long time. "He did participate. Like I said, everything right from the start was live. He was in there participating in that stuff. He didn't do everything. But he did quite a bit. I think he's probably told you how he's feeling, how he's looking," the head coach said. "He was moving good and played hard and had great spirit out there today." Embiid's involvement in the live action included going up and down the court.
• It sounded like Nurse is leaning in favor of using Dominick Barlow at small forward or power forward at this juncture. While he acknowledged Barlow's experience at center and didn't rule it out as an option, Nurse is unsure of whether the two-way contractor can extend to that position for this team.
• Going by the judgements of Maxey and Nurse, Adem Bona is a significantly different player than he was this time a year ago. He's confident and smiley. Probably jumping through the ceiling at 76ers Training Complex as we speak.