The competitive portion of the 2026-27 NBA season begins tomorrow. This year, the NBA is treating us to three fantastic matchups on Opening Night: the Boston Celtics vs. Detroit Pistons, Philadelphia 76ers vs. New York Knicks, and Oklahoma City Thunder vs. San Antonio Spurs.

As many of you are well-aware, the 82-game season is a long grind. Every team is going to have their highs and lows. It's impossible to learn everything you need to know about a group from just one game, at least not one regular season game.

Still, we can learn some stuff about those teams. So, in honor of these three opening night games, let's look at three questions we could have answered by the end of the day tomorrow.

How different does Jalen Duren look?

One of the biggest storylines this offseason was the contract stalemate between the Pistons and Jalen Duren. Despite all the reported tension between the two parties, everything is totally cool now. But are we really going to believe that and forget about everything that's happened? Of course not.

A big reason why the Detroit Pistons unperformed in the playoffs is because of how underwhelming Jalen Duren was, and that's also the reason why the front office was so hesistant to give him the contract he wanted. Yes, he was brilliant in his brief preseason appearances, but that was exhibition ball. Now, he's got a date with the new (and improved) Celtics' defense. Will Duren be ready for the challenge?

Skinny Joel Embiid

The Philadelphia 76ers are putting the whole Superteam formula to the test once again. While I am skeptical that this will work, we won't know for sure until we get at least 30-40 games with this team. Jaylen Brown and LeBron James will have their growing pains as they try to integrate with this group, and it'll take longer than a single game for them and their teammates to get on the same page.

What will be a little more easily apparent is how much gas Joel Embiid has in the tank. Embiid needs to stay healthy for this team to reach its true potential, as the team is pretty light on backups, especially now that Ariel Hukporti is out for the season. So, to help his chances, Embiid has lost a notable amount of weight (roughly 25 to 30 pounds).

I know, just because Embiid makes it through one game without an injury does not mean that all of our fears should extinguish. However, it would be quite a positive development to see that some of the weight Embiid has shed has helped bring back some of the mobility his injuries have zapped.

How bought into the three-guard lineup are the San Antonio Spurs?

We've already discussed the politics behind starting De'Aaron Fox, Dylan Harper, and Stephon Castle alongside Devin Vassell and Victor Wembanyama. I've also made it well-known that I have some real reservations about the group.

We won't know if I'm right or wrong by the end of the San Antonio Spurs' opening clash with the Thunder. But we will know how much head coach Mitch Johnson trusts it right now. If the group starts out slow, is he willing to go back to it? What about if its a close game down the stretch? Is he going to stick with the three-guard configuration?

But even more interesting than any of those questions: if Johnson decides to go away from that alignment, which one of those guys is getting the boot?