The Sixers will begin a phased reopening of their practice facility in Camden, New Jersey, on Wednesday for voluntary, individual workouts, the team announced.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy announced Tuesday that professional sports teams in New Jersey are now permitted to resume training and competition, which opened the door for the Sixers.
NBA teams had been allowed to hold individual workouts for players beginning on May 8 with strict restrictions in place. Because of coronavirus-related restrictions imposed in New Jersey, the Sixers hadn't been among the teams holding workouts. However, general manager Elton Brand did say that Ben Simmons had been allowed to use the team's practice facility to do rehab work for a nerve impingement in his lower back.
"Ben and others have been given permission to use our facility," Brand said on May 5. "It's essential that they have the proper equipment to workout and rehab, so he's been doing that ever since the first week. We were able to get him access there. Joel Embiid's been working out. He's conditioning, he's focused, he's asking about when his trainer can come in, when he can get on the court.
"So I wouldn't bet against him. He's going to be ready and ramped up. Tobias [Harris] is a similar situation. He's been getting treatment on and off. Most of our players are in market, by the way. Tobias is in market and he's been getting treatment also."
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe reported last week that teams expect the league to issue guidelines around June 1 on recalling players who have left their markets, and for workouts to expand around the same time.
The NBA announced Saturday that it is engaged in "exploratory conversations" about resuming the 2019-20 season at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, in late July. The season has been suspended since March 11 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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On May 15, head coach Brett Brown said he thought a three-week ramp-up period would likely be sufficient before returning to play.
"The notion of how the players come in influences kind of everything," Brown said. "The three-week thing I think can be achieved as long as the fitness base of the players coming in is at the standard that I'm saying," he said. "With that … I feel comfortable that we could go play basketball again."
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