The Philadelphia 76ers will enter the 2026-27 season with higher expectations and more national attention than they have had in years.
After a blockbuster offseason that brought LeBron James and Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia, the Sixers will take the court alongside Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe with legitimate championship expectations. The NBA schedule reflects the league's interest, with Philadelphia receiving a franchise-record 34 nationally televised games.
The season opens with perhaps the most anticipated Sixers game in recent memory, with marquee matchups scattered throughout the schedule. Here are 10 must-see games on the Sixers' upcoming schedule:
The Sixers will open the season against the defending NBA champion New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, with New York scheduled to raise its championship banner before tipoff. The Knicks eliminated the Sixers from last season’s playoffs, giving Philadelphia an immediate opportunity to make a statement against the team that ended its season.
The banner raising may not even be the biggest storyline of the night, as Jaylen Brown and LeBron James will make their Sixers debuts. If Philadelphia wants to announce itself as a serious championship contender, there may be no better stage.
Two days after making their debuts in New York, the new-look Sixers will finally take the floor in front of their home fans.
The opponent? The Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron’s former team and one of the teams reportedly in the James sweepstakes this summer. This will be the first opportunity for Philadelphia fans to see James and Brown in Sixers uniforms at home. It also gives the team a chance to establish its home-court identity against one of the Eastern Conference's better teams.
The atmosphere should be unlike anything Philadelphia has experienced for a regular-season opener in years.
Celtics at Sixers, Nov. 10
Nov. 10 will mark the first meeting between the Sixers and Boston Celtics this season and the first time Jaylen Brown will lace up against his former team. Brown spent the first portion of his career in Boston, helping the Celtics win a championship and becoming one of the franchise's most important players.
For Sixers fans, seeing Brown go up against the organization that drafted him and developed him into a superstar will be must-see television, especially whenever he and Jayson Tatum match up.
The Miami Heat were also reportedly a finalist in James’ free agency this summer, coming up short to the Sixers. This marks the second time James has spurned the Heat, adding another layer of intrigue to the matchup.
The Heat made one of the biggest moves of the offseason as well, acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo and pairing him with Bam Adebayo to immediately become one of the Eastern Conference's most intriguing teams.
Embiid against Giannis alone would be enough to sell this game. Add James, Brown and Maxey to the mix, and this could be one of the most physically demanding games Philadelphia plays all season.
Nikola Jokic versus Joel Embiid. Need we say more?
Two of the best big men of their generation going head-to-head is always appointment viewing. Jokic's ability to control a game as a scorer, passer and rebounder presents a completely different challenge than most teams can offer.
For Embiid, this is also an opportunity to show that he can still dictate the game against the player who has dominated the MVP conversation for much of the past several seasons. The real question will be whether Embiid is healthy enough to take the court.
This is easily one of the most anticipated games on Philadelphia's schedule: LeBron James’ return to Los Angeles.
James spent eight seasons with the Lakers, won a championship in Los Angeles and became one of the most important players in franchise history. Now he'll walk into Crypto.com Arena wearing a Sixers uniform on Christmas Day. The NBA couldn't have scripted it much better.
The matchup also gives Philadelphia a chance to measure itself against one of the league's biggest brands on its biggest regular-season stage. The Sixers-Lakers matchup is part of the NBA's five-game Christmas Day slate. Expect the national spotlight to be squarely on James and potentially Bronny James as well.
Thunder at Sixers, Jan. 6
A Western Conference powerhouse comes to Philadelphia in the dog days of the NBA calendar.
Oklahoma City represents a completely different type of challenge for the Sixers. The Thunder's combination of youth, athleticism, length and depth can test even the most experienced teams.
For Philadelphia, this is an opportunity to see how its veteran-heavy roster matches up against one of the NBA's most talented young teams. It could also provide a fascinating contrast between two very different roster-building philosophies.
It will also mark the return of fan favorite Jared McCain, who was traded at last season's deadline.
If the Nov. 10 meeting in Philadelphia is emotional, this one could be even more intense.
Jaylen Brown returns to Boston.
The former Celtics star should receive a strong reaction from the Boston crowd, and the stakes could be even higher by January. By then, Philadelphia should have a much better understanding of what its new roster can become.
Brown's tenure in Boston ended after his name surfaced in trade talks involving Giannis Antetokounmpo. He'll have an opportunity to show his former organization what it gave up.
San Antonio has one of the league's most intriguing young stars in Victor Wembanyama, while Philadelphia will bring a veteran core led by Embiid and James.
It creates an intriguing clash between the present and future of the NBA.
Wembanyama's size and defensive ability will present a fascinating challenge for Embiid, who has had success against the Spurs, most notably scoring a career-high 70 points. San Antonio should be among the contenders in the Western Conference, making this a potential litmus test for a Sixers team hoping to reach the NBA Finals.
This may not have the same national appeal as Sixers-Knicks or Sixers-Lakers, but don't overlook it.
Philadelphia should be jockeying for playoff position, and Toronto could be fighting for postseason positioning of its own. That makes this the type of game that could become much more important than it looks when the schedule is first released.
Kawhi Leonard's return to Philadelphia could also bring back memories for Sixers fans and Joel Embiid, the lone remaining player from the Sixers' 2019 playoff series against the Raptors. That series ended with Leonard's bouncing Game 7 winner.
There will be plenty of games worth watching beyond these 10.
The NBA clearly recognizes the appeal of Philadelphia's new-look roster. With James joining Brown, Embiid and Maxey, the Sixers aren't simply entering the season as championship contenders. They've also become one of the league's premier television attractions.
MORE: Jaylen Brown on joining Sixers: ‘Winning is the agenda’
