PHILADELPHIA — All systems are a go to start the 2026-27 Knicks season.

Except one.

Backup guard Jose Alvarado was a late scratch for New York’s preseason opener against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Xfinity Mobile Arena on Monday. The Knicks ruled Alvarado as day-to-day with a left knee contusion.

His absence left Brown with 20 available players to sort through during training camp, and Brown said the starters would play sparingly in Monday’s exhibition matchup before ramping up for what he calls “a dress rehearsal” in the preseason finals.

“Everybody’s been busting their behind in camp,” said Brown. “Everybody’s good people, and it’s our first game. So I’m gonna play everybody. Twenty guys. Jose’s not playing.”

The Sixers opted to sit LeBron James, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey for Monday’s opener but kept ex-Boston Celtics Finals MVP Jaylen Brown and rising sophomore V.J. Edgecombe on the active list. Philadelphia notably vaulted up the Eastern Conference standings with a series of deals following their 4-0 sweep at the hands of the Knicks in the second round last season.

“You look at their roster, man, it’s just loaded: multiple-time All-Star, multiple-time All-Star, multiple-time All-Star, MVP candidate, MVP candidate, MVP candidate,” Brown said. “I remember back in the day, Pop said — when I was an assistant for him — there is a change from having two All-Stars on your team to having three. He brought it to our attention as a staff. He was like, you made at least three NBA All-Stars, and not just one-offs, but perennial All-Stars to go win a championship. “And this is when we were going against Kobe [Bryant] and Shaq[uille O’Neal] and their [Lakers] team and all that.

“You look at this [Philly] team here, and they’ve got as many All-Stars or guys of that nature as they had in Miami when LeBron was down there. So they’re definitely a deep team, a talented team. Nick Nurse does a phenomenal job. He’s a championship-level coach, and they’re definitely going to be one of the teams that are contending in the East.

“In my opinion, it just got harder for everybody with the team that they assembled here.”

CENTER STAGE

There’s an open competition for third-string center behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond now that Mitchell Robinson (Boston) and Ariel Hukporti (Philadelphia) have left New York in free agency. The in-house competitors include James Wiseman, who has a pre-existing relationship with Brown dating back to their shared time in Golden State; Tony Bradley, who the Knicks are familiar with as an opponent in each of their last two playoff runs, and Drew Eubanks, a tough-nosed veteran with a streaky shot from behind the arc.

Brown said he’s not ranking game-plan understanding, athleticism or IQ in his evaluation of the players competing for Hukporti’s old role. Most of the minutes at center will be split between Towns and Drummond.

“I think just it’s just kind of gut feel. And then we’ll look at production because they’re gonna probably give us different levels of protection in different areas. Tony is just a really smart guy that has a great feel for the game, and when you watch him play, they’re not necessarily sexy, but he’s extremely efficient, and then there are times when it’s like, ‘Oh, my God, he kicked our ass [in the past],” Brown explained. “When you look at Wiseman, he’s younger, he’s a little more raw, he’s a vertical threat. He’s one of the best runners I’ve been around. You can see and feel his length and his athleticism and his potential.

“Then when you look at Drew, just a toughness about him, and you know what you’re gonna get, not tonight, but every fricking night that you go out there, ’cause he’s got a great feel, a great sense of toughness about him, and again, he’s not afraid to do anything against anybody, and his belief is at a pretty high level.

“So they’ll all initially bring something a little bit different, and we’ll just see, at the end of the day, if any of them, in terms of the center spot, fit well enough to be on our team.”

CHAMPIONSHIP LEVEL TOILETRIES

Brown said one thing has changed with how his voice lands in the locker room now that he’s won an NBA title: his travel kit for toiletries, courtesy of the Knicks’ equipment staff.

“Something has changed: This is kind of cool. So, our equipment guys are great, Kyle, Steve, Will, shout out to them. One of the best in the league, and they give me a toothbrush and toothpaste, mouthwash, and lotion, and all that. And they put it in my locker area, and they usually just carry it in a paper bag or a plastic bag,” said Brown. “[Now] they put it in one of those travel things. And they set it really nice on my desk, and I go in there today, and these freaking guys, they made a travel case. Like this is where my lotion is. This is where the Kleenex goes. The two travel Listerines, the deodorant, and Sensodyne toothpaste in the back.

“And, it’s foam. It’s in a case, and not only that, you can’t see it, but right here, it says lotion. Right here, it says deodorant. So this is what championship level coaches get, right? I guarantee Nick [Nurse] has this s–t, too.